Laments of a Lawliet
by A.D. Williams
Summary: L doesn't know quite why Roger has kicked a young Beyond Birthday, Mello, Matt, and Near out of Wammy's, but that's the least of his concerns right now. Fact of the matter is, now they have to stay with him...and the rest of the task force. Tylenol, L?
1. The Call That Started it All

Ah, my first long DN fict. About time! Alright, let me point out a few things that you might find very different from the real show/manga or whichever. Basically, I'd like you to somewhat forget many of the characters normal personalities. This is a comedy, so everyone is pretty much OOC. Well…mainly L! Second, I have Beyond Birthday being a teenager here and Mello, Matt, and Near being toddlers. I've always loved the idea of the last three being kids with L being something like a parent to them. Anyways, if you can get over those few things, I hope you enjoy the story! Read it, like it, love it and please, please review it!

Disclaimer: I in no way own any of the Death Note characters, all are property of the creators and blah blah blah…am I getting paid for this?! xD!

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**The Call That Started it All**

It was a little past nine in the morning when he got the call on his cell phone. Though L had told the rest of the task force to turn off theirs, it was a bit imperative that he keep his on, just in case Watari called. Like he was doing now.

The very reason L had told the rest of the task force to either set aside or turn off all of their electronics was so there were no interruptions during his talks with them. Which they just happened to be in the middle of one right now. Yes, as he picked up his phone, he caught that "Where's the justice in this?!" look from Matsuda, but he was captain of this ship, so to speak, and Matsuda was a nuisance. He'd just have to deal with it.

"Yes?" L asked into the phone.

"Ryuzaki, I just received a message from Roger back in Winchester. It seems he's grown fed-up with a few of your protégées and has sent them here in hopes that maybe they will listen to you."

L coughed, then spit out the coffee he'd just taken a sip from. It all hit Matsuda's face.

"What?! They're coming here?! Now?!" L shouted. "Watari, call Roger back. That plane couldn't have taken off already! And…er…what protégées exactly are we talking about here?"

"Um, I believe it was four…Beyond, Mello, Matt, and Near."

No way. No…frickin'…way…Beyond Birthday, alright, the boy had always been an odd one and has always filled others with unease. But to the best of his knowledge, he'd never done anything to make anyone consider he was bad. Just mischievous. And Mello…yes, Mello was an unruly one. Okay, he could give credit to Roger for not really liking him. But Matt and Near? Matt stayed hidden in a closet half the time, playing video games and Near was always playing with toys! They kept to themselves, how were they causing problems?!

"Sir?" Watari said, with an air as if having said it several times. L hadn't been paying attention.

"I'm sorry, what was that Watari?"

"I said, Roger has told me that the plane took off last night. They should be landing within the hour."

L's heart stopped.

"Ryuzaki?" the elderly man said on the other side. He could tell he had stopped breathing.

Finally, L sighed. "I suppose they're here now. I could try to send them back on a plane, but the likelihood that they'll go is lower than four percent. Alright. Please ready the quarters for them, and then go to retrieve them. I'll debrief the task force on the up coming changes."

"Very well." Then Watari hung up.

"Alright people, there's about to be a change of plans," L started off saying to every one else. "I have some of my students coming to stay with me, a total of four between the ages of sixteen and three."

Suddenly, everyone but Matsuda cringed. Soichiro Yagami knew all too well that teenagers could be a royal pain, as for toddlers. And preteens…he shuddered as he thought of his daughter Sayu and how unpredictable her "Just leave me alone!" and "Nobody understands me!" fits became…hell, even Light went through it…he was still going through it! Just…a more subdued version, thankfully.

"Aw, I love kids!" Matsuda gushed, still wiping L's spit-out coffee off his face. Everyone stopped and stared at him. They understood the possible danger lying ahead. Aizawa only had a young daughter and an infant son, but it was enough to be clued in. Mogi and Ide had no children of their own but that was for a reason. They were never one's for rearing children…heh-heh…rearing children…oops, _Knocked Up _joke, sorry.

Well, L would see just how enthusiastic Matsuda remained once they got there. For now, he needed some time alone because in a little bit, he would be praying for even a second of peace.

Forgive the short chapter; I didn't want to give away too much here. This might not be too long of a story, that's why…just a few random drabble chapters, since I know my muse is prone to wander off if I write anything more than five chapters! Anyways, please review!


	2. Wammy Reunion

Wow, I don't think I've _ever _had a story gain so much popularity so quickly! Thank you everyone who reviewed and thanks to everyone else who favorited the story, added it to your alert list, or even now consider me amongst one of your favorite authors! You've made a very happy writer out of me! Alright, now about this chapter…I think I've leveled out everyone's personality here, for the most part. I'll admit that I'm totally not good with making L sound like he really does in the show and stuff, so he'll probably flip-flop back and forth between being somewhat sensible, and being the coffee-spitting person he was in chapter one! Anywho, I hope you enjoy this! ^_^

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Wammy Reunion

A quiet beep went off on the first floor of the headquarters building, announcing that someone was attempting to enter the compound. Watari. And with the children. Everyone waited with abated breath.

L watched on a camera as first the old man got out. He was about to walk over to the back of the car to open another door when it burst open on its own. A tiny blonde boy sprang out, landed nimbly on his feet, then bowed to an invisible audience. Next to follow him was a redheaded boy, a pair of goggles pushed up on his forehead as he concentrated on a handheld game. He seemed almost oblivious to his surroundings.

Everyone then turned back to the vehicle, waiting for someone else to get out. The passenger front door opened and a tall, lanky boy with disheveled black hair got out. There was something about his appearance that radiated…that something wasn't quite right about him. Was it his goofy smirk/smile? Or his pale skin? It seemed as though he wanted to do something wrong or mischievous but was holding the urge back only barely. He quietly stood off to the side as the others gathered to Watari.

After a few more seconds of waiting, the elderly man sighed and walked up to the car. Leaning down into it, he appeared to be rummaging around for something. Behind his back, the blonde boy mimicked kicking him in his behind. The redhead took a moment to glance up and snicker, then went back to his game.

Watari straightened up, pulling something, or rather someone with him. The final person to leave the car was a small boy with white hair. He clung dearly to some robot toy in one hand, the other hand's thumb in his mouth. He was evidently the youngest one and was taking full advantage of that, seeing as how he was wrapped around the English man, forcing himself to be held. He was a bit beyond the age that he could appropriately pass for doing this, but nobody said anything.

Awkwardly, they made their way farther inside, out of the car garage. L noticed the visible stiffening of everyone in the room. Half of them were out of their element when it came to children and the other half didn't want to relive what they'd been through with them. He glanced over to Light. The boy was sitting next to him at the long desk that held the computers. He appeared mildly uninterested on the outside, but L had known him long enough to detect that the tightly curled fist under his cheek meant that even he was a bit uncomfortable.

Finally, the front doors opened with a _whoosh. _And the room was filled with noise.

"L!!" The blonde screamed and ran over to him. Since he was among one of L's special students, he'd been one of the few to have ever seen him. In fact, the four boys that had just entered were the only ones from Winchester (minus Roger) to have ever seen his real face.

Once the blonde reached level with him, he boldly said, "So, we finally meet again. I was wondering if you were going to stay in hiding forever or properly teach us. That dump called Wammy's is completely useless."

L only blinked and said, "I see," before letting his gaze travel behind the boy, back to the others.

The other two flanked Watari (except the oldest boy) as he drew closer. Once there, the redhead jumped up into a chair, keeping his eyes on his game. The white-haired boy however, shimmied down a pants leg, settling himself on the floor. Like the redhead, he seemed to be ignoring everyone else in the room as he began to play with his toy.

Watari reached in his pocket, producing the car keys. Very weirdly, he leaned down to L, handing them to him. As he slipped them in his hand, his real motive became clear. Quietly, he whispered in L's ear, "Good luck with them," gave a hard squeeze to his hand to convey a deep sympathy, then rightened up and began to leave the room.

The teenager was still by the door and as Watari passed him on his way out, the boy locked onto him with a wide, very uneasing gaze. The dark eyes bore into him, making the others' skin crawl. The man was all too happy when he finally reached the other side of the door.

Matsuda, who was standing closest to him, took a large step away from him. Okay, this kid evidently had some issues.

"Well then, I guess I better make the introductions," L said, raking his eyes over everyone in the room. They landed on the blonde, who was still glaring at him, as though his miserable time at the institution was _his _fault.

"This here is Mello, age five. As you've witnessed, he's quite…upfront about things. Though known to some as a hellion, I hope we won't see any of that here, right Mello?" He bore into the blonde with his own dark eyes.

The boy shrugged. "Yeah, whatever."

L gave him a skeptical look, but went on. "This here," he said, addressing the redhead next to him, "Is Matt, age four. He's pretty much a recluse." Matt paused his game to look up at him quizzically. L met his stare, giving one of his rare, silly smiles. Matt narrowed his eyes for a moment, before slowly turning back to the electronic device.

"That's Near," L went on, nodding to the white-haired boy sitting at his feet. "He's three. Like Matt with his games, he has an evident attachment to his playthings." Near didn't even bother to look up at him, but continued to make laser sounds as he "fired" the arm cannon on the robot.

"And finally, that," L said in a voice a few octaves lower than before. All eyes shifted quickly with slight agitated fear to the last person. "Is Beyond Birthday, age sixteen. Sometimes known as B or BB. Choose one; he generally goes by all three."

The boy had finally stopped his weird grin and now stood in subdued silence, hands in his pockets. He never raised his head as his name/names were mentioned, but rather seemed more interested in something in the corner, not looking up at any of the others, even L.

"Anyways," the detective went on, calling attention back to himself. "All four are personal students of mine, so please do not look at their ages as a way to gauge their intelligence. In fact, I'd like you to think of them as being on equal playing grounds as yourselves." He paused to take a sip of tea, clearly ignoring the incredulous gasps. "So, with all of this out of the way, please just continue on with what you were doing previously."

It took awhile, but slowly, by degrees, the task force went back to work. L did so as well, and Light clicked through various documents on his computer, not really reading them since his mind was on other things…mainly, their arrivals. Mello had seated himself on the other side of L and was moodily playing a game on the computer (after finding that nearly all of his favorite websites had been quickly remotely blocked by L). Near continued to spin a whimsical world with his toy and Matt gave a silent cheer as he reached level fifty on…whatever it was he was playing.

And nobody noticed that Beyond Birthday, who was still standing off by himself, had begun to grin again…

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Uh-oh, B's up to something! But you'll have to wait till the next chapter to find out! Oh…and I apologize to anyone who's not read the Death Note book, _The Los Angeles BB Murder Cases _novel…my interpretation of B's personality comes from there…so there's going to be a bit of spoilers. Forgive my late warning. And no, of course this isn't just about him! Don't worry; I want all four of them to get up to _something _during their time with L. But enough of this. Please review! Me without reviews is like Ryuk without apples. I do headstands, my body gets all twisted, it's not pretty!


	3. A Tale of Two L's

Okay, this chapter was written over the chorus of multiple hours, starting at about 11 in the evening, lol! It would've been finished and posted a bit sooner than now, but I was interrupted…by our laundry room catching on fire. With no fire alarms in our house, there was no way for us to even know. Had I not wandered out to the kitchen at two in the morning and noticed the flames and smoke behind the room door (we have something of a window in the laundry room/foyer area. It's part of the division between the room and our kitchen), looking for a midnight snack, it's very likely the rest of the house would've caught on fire…let's hear it for late-night cravings, people!

Anywho, except for us being a bit shaken up and ticked that we probably will have to use a laundry mat now, we're dealing with things pretty well. But enough of the personal rambles, I hope you like this chapter! Oh, and since I started the ball rolling with B last chapter…well…I kinda had to finish it up, lol! Still, do remember that this is about all the Wammy's boys! So, read this, like this, love this, and please review this!

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A Tale of Two L's

L was on full alert as he watched on monitors his students in their rooms, waiting for the hell to begin. Matt of course was still playing video games (L had gone the extra mile to get him consoles of the newest technology, something in the PlayStation _and_ Xbox lines). Near, now reunited with the rest of his toys that he had brought (Watari had brought their bags up to their rooms) was using several buckets of Lego's to build a multi-colored metropolis. Beyond was…reading a book…more specifically, a manga book. _Battle Royale, _a very graphic series about a high school class thrown on a deserted island and told to kill off each other until there was only one survivor left. L could only hope this wasn't foreshadowing of a dark future for the boy…

And as for Mello…well, he was singing a personal rendition of "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." But…well, maybe he'd save the future murderer thoughts for him…

_Row, row, row your boat, gently down the stream_

_Throw your teacher overboard and listen to them scream!_

_Five days later, floating down the Delaware_

_Chewing on their underwear_

_Wish they had another pair!_

_Ten days later eaten by a polar bear_

_Guts flying everywhere_

_That's how the teacher died! _

Or…this was simply the boy showing his creativity in grotesque, but not all together unusual student-teacher hate songs…was _he _the teacher he was speaking of here?! The probability of Mello actually disliking him was now at six, no make that seven percent.

He saw new movement out the corner of his eye and looked up at that screen. Beyond had put down his book and was standing up. He went over to his dresser, full of the clothes that he'd already put away. He carefully pushed some articles aside, making sure not to cause them to unfold again. Finally, he pulled back with something white in his hands. A shirt. A slightly long sleeved white shirt. One _very _similar to the one that a certain dark-haired detective who was watching him was wearing.

He peeled off the long-sleeved black shirt he was wearing and put on the white one. Carefully, he folded the black shirt and set it at the bottom of a clothes hamper in the corner. Then he went into his already set-up bathroom and…

L did have cameras in the bathrooms, but he decided to give the boys at least some shred of privacy. Especially Beyond. He was a teenager after all…then again, perhaps that was more reason to keep an eye on him. Regardless, he didn't switch the camera view over to the bathroom. He'd just have to wait for the boy to exit back out and make his deductions based off of that.

He waited. And waited. And waited some more. Mello had sung his song twenty more times before the boy had shuffled out of the bathroom. Nothing seemed amiss about him. His hands were in the pockets of his…blue jeans. Alright, so the boy had managed to dress like him. It wasn't as though his style was something unique that couldn't easily be copied, L thought to himself. Still…Beyond was known for wearing dark clothes. He'd never been seen, to the best of his knowledge, in anything brighter than red. And it was a wine red at that.

Beyond opened his room door and left out. L switched the camera view and watched him as he walked down the hall. Then he turned a corner and began to descend the long stairs leading to the main floor. L himself was still there, though he had the different monitors up on his laptop. It wouldn't do to let everyone know he was watching his pupils…though he figured they already knew. At least, Light and his father. Those two caught on to things a bit quicker than the others. Like father like son? L shuddered. For Yagami senior's sake, he hoped that they'd never be totally alike.

A few minutes later and L shut down the cameras that were following Beyond, seeing as the boy was now in the room. He paused for a second, as though surveying the area, until his eyes happened to alight on L…

And L's eyes landed on him. He hadn't noticed that Beyond had taken up walking in a slouch like he himself. Due to this, the cameras hadn't captured his face. And what the boy had done to it. Beyond's skin was already a pale shade. His hair was naturally black and wild as well. What were not natural were the black shadows under the eyes. Nor was the slightly hunched back that he suddenly had.

L was about to say something but was interrupted by the arrival of Mello. "Hey L, I—whoa!" he said, blinking twice at who he thought was L but was really Beyond, then looking over to the real L. "So, who's cosplaying who?" he asked with a chuckle.

"Beyond seems to find it amusing to dress up like me," Beyond said, his voice sounding _exactly _like L's. L narrowed his eyes. Oh he was good. He was real good. But he could be better.

"Mm, yes, it is true that B likes to dress up like me," L said, making Mello whip his head around at the other man. What the hell was going on here?! "But _Beyond, _could you show me where my room is? Seeing as you're me, that should be no problem."

Beyond stared at him with the same wide-eyed gaze that L would often use to scrutinize people. Light knew it all too well, and as he watched from his position from over by the computers still, he was surprised at how well the other kid could pull it off. Very eerie.

The teenager blinked for a moment, then put a finger to his lip. "I could show you. But considering that I am indeed the real L, that would mean giving away a secret spot to me. And besides, it'd be foolish of me to take advice from my students."

_Oh, nicely played, B, nicely played_, L thought. But, as he'd been thinking, he could better him. "Yes, that would seem the reasonable answer to give. But truth of the matter is, I actually don't have just one room here. I have over five. It would only make sense for me to continually move, so that in the unlikely case that someone here might follow me in order to snoop through my things, my room would have been changed by the time they were able to come back to it."

Beyond narrowed his eyes in a slightly agitated manner and pursed his lips. This was only meant to be a fun game, but as of right now, he was losing it. And he hated losing.

Near and Matt took that time to join them, Near holding Matt's hand as the redhead reluctantly guided him into the room. Matt hated that the boy felt that he always needed an escort no matter where he went. He was three! He could walk and talk just fine on his own! Why the hell did he always need to be babysat?

But once Matt noticed the two L's in the room, he pulled up short next to Mello. "What's going on?" he whispered to him.

"Cosplay, shh," Mello whispered back.

"Oh," Matt said.

Near let go of Matt's hand and continued further into the room, walking slowly on slightly unsteady legs. Completely ignoring everyone else that was watching him, he climbed up onto the armchair that L was sitting in, then into his lap. Putting a thumb in his mouth, he rested his head against a shoulder and proceeded to fall asleep.

And just like that, the mystery of the two L's was solved.

"I knew that was the real him all along," Mello said with an air of all-knowingness.

Matt gave him a dry look. "Uh-huh," he muttered sarcastically.

"I did!" Mello shouted.

"Whatever, Mello," Matt said, pulling a hand-held game out of his pocket and proceeding to play it. He walked away from the blonde, who was following him, trying to prove his case still. Matt just wasn't trying to have any of it.

Beyond gave a nonchalant shrug, then giggled. Then giggled some more. It was actually more of a chuckle, one that was best saved for a person mentally insane. Some sort of warped humor lit his eyes, and L inwardly shuddered at the image.

"Go figure Near and his silent deductions would see through this all," Beyond said, his weird grin now in full bloom. "Fine, _L, _you won this round. Besides, it was just a harmless little game, right?"

Now L narrowed his own eyes. There was much more to this. But what? He'd have to put in an extra effort into trying to figure this boy out. Now he could see why Roger had wanted him gone. Hell, _he _wanted him gone! But then again, perhaps this was the best place for him…

L snapped out of his musings to see that B was leaving the room, still in a slouch and still grinning at him over his shoulder. As he climbed the stairs again and rounded a corner out of sight, the chuckles turned into outright laughter, a cold, mirthless sound that drifted down to the rest of the taskforce.

Everyone froze until the echoes had died away.

"Well then, wasn't that…different," L said, making them jump with the sudden sound of his voice. "I did warn you that Beyond was an unusual one. For safety sake, if ever there is a time when none of you trust that I'm me, here is a security question: What is my, or rather Ryuzaki's favorite food? The answer is—"

"Cheesecake!" Matsuda yelled

"Chocolate!" Mello shouted.

"Ice cream?" Aizawa ventured.

L groaned internally. "No, no, and that's your favorite dessert, Aizawa," L pointed out. "And I said food, not dessert anyways. My favorite food is…I don't have one."

The anticipation of finding out something about the great detective had been building like helium in a balloon, but at these last words, the balloon popped and now everyone felt deflated.

"That's it? That's your answer then? That you don't have a favorite food?" Ide said, evident dislike in his voice. He and L had never gotten along much, especially since the man had imposed a no-smoking rule while inside the building…very bothersome to always have to go through security when coming back in.

L decided to remain civil regardless. "Mm, yes. Granted, Beyond might expect that to be my answer. Therefore, I'm going to put in place a few other questions, just to be sure. Until then, please be vigilant in your own deductive abilities of me so as to be able to tell us apart if he should decide to…what was it you called it, Mello?"

"Cosplay?" the boy said, not turning around from the computer he was at since he was currently hacking the system.

"Yes, should Beyond feel the need to 'cosplay' as me again," L said, immediately using his own laptop to hack Mello's computer and shut the whole thing down. The boy silently cursed before getting up and storming off.

L really hoped that this was simply teenage arrogance of some sort, something to be expected from B. He looked down to the white bundle still on his lap. Near was still resolutely attached to him, sleeping peacefully. He sighed, then gently picked him up and laid him down on an empty couch. He knew Near could be affectionate, but now just wasn't the time.

No matter. The boy got up and wandered off, as though he'd never really been asleep. Maybe he hadn't been. The detective watched him totter away. Boy, children were truly a mystery.

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Ah, so there you have it, chapter three. Oh, before I forget…Mello's song wasn't really something I had made up. Truthfully, I used to sing it back when I was in elementary! Along with all of my other classmates…yes, teacher death songs were nothing new to us, what kid didn't hate school at that age? And really, I loved all of my teachers, but it's still fun to sing those silly songs! Okay, next chapter I promise to have more of Mello, Matt, and Near in it since this one spotlighted B. With that said, please review!


	4. Dining and Whining

You know, I had a heck of a lot of fun writing this chapter. I mean, I've enjoyed all of the chapters up until now, but this one was truly one that I found myself cracking up during nearly the whole thing. I hope all of you experience the same thing, ^_^ Enjoy!

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Dining and Whining

It started as one voice that quickly became a chorus…and then, something of a war-chant. And it all started with sweet little Matt:

"I'm hungry."

Well, of course Mello had to throw his two cents in as well, and thus, repeated the call for food. "I'm hungry! I demand sustenance!"

Near, who was close to them on the floor where they were sitting (Matt playing a game in a remote corner, Mello practicing his handwriting by writing something that looked suspiciously like "I hate L; L smells" and Near was _drawing _the design plan for what looked to be an amusement park), the boy put down his crayon, twirling a strand of his hair. "I'm kinda hungry too," he said, tilting his head to the side and staring up at the ceiling.

Matsuda set aside the files in his hands and smiled. "Aw, aren't they adorable?" He said to Ide and Mogi. Definitely the wrong people to convey such a thing to. They only grunted responses and seemingly went back to their work. It was evident that they each had an eye trained on the children.

Aizawa and Soichiro Yagami exchanged glances. No, the call for food was not adorable. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Once again, they were the only two actually clued-in as to why. And it looked like L was about to find out as well.

"I said I'm hungry!" Mello screamed. He got off the floor and walked over to L, who had only flicked his eyes at them when the first request for food was made. Grabbing his shirt, the boy violently pulled on the hem, demanding that L fill their stomachs.

"Watari is bringing something soon. Please be patient," L said in the same tone that he'd use with the task force when explaining his deductive reasoning's. But these were just children, no matter how brilliant they were. And presently they were hungry.

"That's too long to wait! God only knows when the old man will get here! Next year?! I want food NOW!" Mello screeched.

L was about to reproach him for his mouth, when Matt spoke up again. "Yeah, I have to agree with him. Watari's not here, but you are. Can't you fix us something?"

L opened his mouth to reply, but was interrupted by Near. "Yes, I too agree with Mello and that's saying something. We're not asking for a gourmet meal, just _something _at all to eat."

L's face was now a mixture of wanting to be stern but shocked by Near's little speech. For three years old, this was impressive, even for a Wammy's kid. Still, L would've liked to have shared his thoughts but was once again cut off.

Beyond poked his head from around a corner. "I could do with a bite to eat myself. If that's not too much to ask." He threw in a grin, then disappeared.

L sighed. "Fine. Any objections to take-out?"

A chorus of "Yay!!!" went up from the little ones and from behind his corner, Beyond whispered, "Now that's more like it."

L reluctantly pulled out his cell phone and dialed some number. Considering he never ate take-out, it was a bit of an anomaly as to how he knew any numbers for one. Still, a few moments of silence passed as the phone on the other side rang. And then, L worked his voice magic.

"Uh, hey! Is this Quiznos? Got a group of some hungry buddies to feed, think you can help me out? Great!"

Mello, Matt, and Near made faces at each other at the idea of sub sandwiches, but decided to take what they could get.

"Um, let's see. I need two foot longs—"

Mello caught on immediately to L's plan. Two foot longs were twenty-four inches. Twenty-four divided by three (he, Near, and Matt) was eight inches apiece of food. Considering their ages, and what was going to be stuffed in those eight inches, it was appropriate. But that was just it, _what _was going to be stuffed into it?

"I want the five meat stack!" Mello put in.

L narrowed his eyes at him. "Hey, what's the five-meat stack I've been hearing about?" he asked into the phone. His voice was that of some college kid, as though gearing up for a party or something.

As the person on the other end read off what the five-meat stack was, L's eyes narrowed even further. Finally, he pulled his ear away from the receiver, covering one end with his hand. Speaking to Mello, he said, "It has turkey, ham, Genoa salami, pepperoni, spicy capicola, cheddar cheese, mayo, lettuce, tomato, and smokey mustard. Do you even know what half of that is?"

"Yeah, food!" Mello grumbled, rubbing his stomach.

L continued to stare at him. "You have to share this with two others and yet you don't even know what it is. I say we should go with a safer alternative. How about a traditional sub? And I'll even make the second one the primo meatball. How's that?"

Near said, "Sounds fine to me."

Matt said, "Way to go for clogged arteries."

And Mello kicked him in his shins, while snarling "Shut up! I want that meatball sub!"

L got back on the phone and told the person his order. Then his eyes trailed over to Light, who was still sitting beside him at the computers. This is honestly where he spent most of his time while at the head quarters.

He raised a pointed eyebrow to him, quietly inquiring what his order would be. Light frowned. "You don't really expect me to eat a _sub sandwich _do you?"

L blinked at him, then said into the phone, "Um, another buddy of mine will take the black angus steak sandwich. Make sure you lay on the steak pretty thick." He smirked at Light as the other boy spluttered his protests as to the choice. Mello quietly whispered, "Lucky bastard."

Beyond popped his head around the corner again and said, "Chicken carbonara," and was gone again. L repeated his order into the phone.

He then, oh so slowly, turned his eyes to the rest of the task force. Soichiro tried to wave him away, while Matsuda tried to wave for his attention. L randomly picked something for the chief anyways, while ignoring Matsuda's waving hand. Mogi and Ide chose basic ham and turkey subs while Aizawa ordered the Alpine chicken "sammie" sandwich.

Matsuda, who was tired of being ignored, shouted out, "I want the Big Kahuna Tuna Torpedo sandwich!!"

Everyone stared at him, but Matsuda didn't look the least bit ashamed of his order.

L gave him one of his slow blinks, then said into the phone, "And I'd also like to add a kids cheesy pepperoni pizza."

"Wait, what?!!" Matsuda shouted. "Aw, come on Ryuzaki! That's not fair!" he complained.

L seemingly ignored him, but during all his rants, Matsuda missed it when he changed it to a classic Italian sub.

So, that only left himself and Watari. Well, nine times out of ten, Watari honestly wouldn't want anything. But what kind of person would L be if he didn't even try? He ordered him the honey bourbon chicken sandwich.

As for himself, he ordered fifteen double chocolate-chip cookies and enough Mountain Dew's to satisfy everyone and called it a day. He was promised everything would be ready within forty-five minutes.

And thus, the waiting game began. The rest of the task force calmly went back to work, but Matsuda was all but fuming at the injustice of what he thought was still his order.

Time seemed to tick by slowly and more than once, L heard one of the boys' stomachs growl. Everytime he did, something deep inside him gave a throb of pain. These kids were all but starving and he had neglected their needs. He was the top detective in the world, but probably the worst parent as well. He felt the beginning tinges of depression coming on and forced himself to lose himself in his work, lest he be over-come by it.

He became so immersed that the beeping of the motion alarms around the building almost made him jump. To play it off, he exclaimed jubilantly, "Ah, foods here! Guess I'll go get it."

Light did a double-take and stared at him. "You? You sure you can carry all of that? Not to mention, your posture would make it pretty difficult to do so as well."

_Come on, take the bait…_L thought, smirking inside his mind.

"Maybe I should go get it instead. Me and…Matsuda?" Matsuda, who had finally been clued in by the chief that his order had been changed, readily agreed to help.

L's mental smirk turned into a wide grin. _Got 'em hook, line and sinker! _On the outside, he was his normal calm self. He nodded once, a somber expression. "Thank you. Light-kun is too kind."

He watched on the monitors as the boy and Matsuda went outside to greet the delivery guy. The man looked a bit terrified by the building, since some electronic voice kept telling him "Warning, you are too close to the perimeter. Trespassers will be shot."

Light of course passed through security with no problem, finally making the voice be quiet. He handed the money L had given him over, then shared the load between himself and Matsuda. Once back inside, shamefully, everyone, and I do mean _everyone _fell upon them like starving hyenas.

…Okay, Soichiro used some class, seeing as he was the oldest there at the moment, and Ide seemed in no rush either. But everyone else was one step away from coming to blows over claiming their food first.

_Savages! _Light thought, watching as they all but snatched the food from his hands. Like piranhas making short work of a carcass, soon there was nothing left in the cardboard tray. Even L had hurriedly grabbed his cookies, now munching on them back in his chair. Matsuda's tray held only Light's sandwich, he having grabbed his and gone back to his seat, smacking loudly as he ate and slurping even more loudly on his drink.

The boys thrummed their fingers and tapped their feet as they impatiently waited for Mello to divide the sandwiches.

Light sighed, then grabbed his sandwich. He was about to unwrap it until he noticed the writing on the wrapper. Chicken carbonara. Wait. Didn't he have black angus steak? Who had the—

Beyond strolled out from behind his corner, a large wad of food in his mouth and a trail of cheese from the sub to his lips hanging in the air. Light caught sight of the dark meat in the sandwich and began to seethe. Beyond flashed him a discreet grin before rounding another corner. Light growled, furious at his defeat, and took a vicious bite out of his now chicken carbonara sandwich (He took his sandwich…AND ATE IT!!). It was pretty damn delicious, but he'd keep that to himself.

L looked over at everyone as they happily ate away and felt a sense of pride. Perhaps slowly, but surely, he was getting the hang of not only the parenting thing but also on how to be a good host.

_Score one for the Lawliet._

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I finally managed to work in a bit of everyone here, even if it seemingly had copious amounts of B, lol! Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, there really is no time frame for this story. Well, I suppose not. I struggled a bit with whether to have L and Light chained together, but then I thought about all the yaoi implications that might bring, and decided that it probably would've turned the story mainly upon them rather than the children. Not to mention, how would they deal with L having to constantly be chained to Light?! No, I'll save that idea for a story rated a bit, higher *smirks*. Well, despite my ramblings here, please review. I'm really loving all the reviews and such! I'm riding cloud nine with all the support!

One more comment…I thank the Quiznos website for help with the menu! I've never eaten at a Quiznos and except for commercials, knew next to nothing of what they had! ^_^ Wow…that meatball sub does seem pretty tasty…


	5. Seen and Unforeseen

I just want all you Beyond lovers to know that I hate you. ^_^ You've got me thinking about him so much that you made me do what I said I wasn't going to do…I wrote another chapter with him! Please, please forgive me MMN fans (Mello, Matt, Near), I honestly did set out with a plot for those three, but the tiny B plot proceeded it…and took up the entire chapter! So, I guess I'll have to save it for the next chapter. I feel really bad that I wrote this, and am mentally kicking myself all over for it. But, it's written and if I take the time to delete it and re-write something else, no telling when I'll update it! Due to the slightly soured mood I'm in (wow, A.D. Williams has other emotions than silly-happiness?! No way! Who are you and where's the real Amanda?! xD!) this chapter is a bit dark and serious…another weird thing.

Oh, and to finally gauge everyone's opinion on the handcuffed Light and L thing, I've started a poll! Everyone, please be kind and answer it because if not, I'll simply jump to my own conclusion and have them as I please (oh, how I wish I could have them as I pleased…whoops, you guys didn't read that!). Anyways, with all of this said, I still hope you non-B lovers still like it. I really like him myself, but I'm again straying from the main gist of this story…and I guess that's really why I'm unhappy…and no, Light, I don't need you hitting me as a way of motivation!

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Seen and Unforeseen

(That's the title of a Harry Potter chapter!)

The rest of the day crept by steadily but slowly. There were almost no disturbances. Almost. But of course someone had to ruin the peace. And of course it would have to be…

Beyond had walked up to L later that day with a frown on his face. Hands in his pockets, he calmly waited for the man to acknowledge his presence. Granted, L was also in the middle of speaking with the other men in the room and the proper thing would have been for Beyond to go somewhere else to wait until L was free, but that wasn't his style.

L tried to drag the conversation out as long as possible, but after awhile, he'd begun to repeat himself, something he hated. Finally, he had no choice but to leave the task force be and find another way to ignore the boy. Acting as if he'd not even seen him, L got up and went over to an armchair. Beyond followed.

The detective opened his laptop and started typing something and there Beyond stood, breathing down his neck. As the boy leaned in, he put a finger to his lip and a slightly amused smile appeared. Though he was again dressed in a black shirt, the similar gesture was an exact replica of L's. Oh no. Here they go again.

Before he could go any further, L finally turned on him. "Is there something you wanted, Beyond? Any possible reason for why you have been shadowing me for the past fifteen minutes?"

Beyond kept the finger to his lip while grinning for no apparent reason. His eyes didn't look as deranged as they had earlier, but the unexplained happiness he was showing was always a sign that something not-so-good was going to happen.

The tension started to rise as they stared each other down. Just before L was about to turn away from him again, Beyond said, "I couldn't help but notice that there's no jam in the kitchen."

Whaa--?!

L blinked in honest confusion. "Jam? Are you looking to make a sandwich or toast?" It had been several hours since they'd eaten.

Beyond's smile grew a little bigger. "No, I just like jam."

L frowned. "Jam by itself?"

"Yes. I find jam to be the one perfect food all on its own without needing to be accompanied by anything else. You love sweets, don't you like jam?"

L gave his own small smirk. "Actually, I find it revolting. Too gooey. The texture is not to my liking."

Beyond's smile vanished. "Is that so? Still, I want some."

L weighed his options. He could refuse him the jam (which Watari would have to go out and get anyways) but then again, he'd never seen Beyond when he was denied something. At the same time, he was not going to be pushed about by his pupil. Really, if he said no, what all would the boy do?

"You'll be fine without it, B. Now please find something to entertain yourself and do stop hovering over me. It's quite Bothersome." L put an emphasis on the B in the word.

The boy gave a small flinch, but the emotion was only a quick flicker across his visage. A second later, it was gone. But the smirk was back.

"Alright, L. I'll go see what I can do." With that, he turned around and stalked off.

L blinked, then looked after him. '_I'll go see what I can do_.' B never spun words needlessly. An atom bomb was about to drop and it was only a matter of time.

The bomb hit around seven p.m. L heard several loud shrieks from roughly five floors up. Meaning these were _very _loud screams. Something kicked into over-drive in his body and he actually got up and ran to see what had happened! Behind him, he heard another set of footsteps. A quick glance showed it was Light. Huh?!

As he dashed up the stairs, a stampede of feet was coming his way. On the third floor, the two groups met, L and Light and a terrified Mello, Matt and Near.

"L!!!" They all screamed. Once within reach, each boy clung to him. He could feel Mello and Matt simply panting for breath, but Near was shaking.

"That kid's frickin' psycho!" Mello shouted, looking behind him fearfully. Matt buried his face into L deeper and nodded, while Near stood behind the man, blocked in between L and Light.

"What happened, exactly?" L asked. No explanations of "who" was needed. It was clear it was Beyond they were speaking of.

"Well, he came up to my room and was all calm like, 'Heya, I have a cool trick that I know, wanna see it?'" Mello spoke for the group. "Well, Near and Matt were there also, and so we all said sure, let's all see how much he sucks at magic. Well, he asked Near to come forward and stand in front of him. He kept staring at him from weird angles and stuff. And then finally, he leaned down and whispered in his face, 'You have exactly twenty more years to live and then you're going to _die."_

All feeling drained from L's face. He could feel Near trying to snuggle deeper into him, as though he could hide away from the words.

"Well, of course Near isn't a dummy and wasn't going to fall for that," Mello continued. "But then Beyond looked at me and said, 'Wow, you die before he does!' but I wasn't about to let him get to me. But then…he turned to Matt and kinda laughed and said, 'Oh man! You have the shortest lifespan of them all!' And…well, Near suddenly started screaming and Matt did too. And…I guess I did also," Mello added grudgingly.

By this time, L was starting to shake in rage. Light cast him a glance and moved away. But he had to agree, it was pretty messed up for a boy his age to say something like that to little kids, no matter how smart they were.

What Light failed to realize was that L wasn't shaking just because of what Beyond had said. It was because it was _true. _L was the only person that B had told about his shinigami eyes. But he had _promised _to _never _tell anyone about the secret and even furthermore, their lifespan. He was also supposed to be careful about not greeting people by name before he was told it.

Beyond knew he was cursed, that much L could see. He knew when his parents were going to die when he was only six years old but was helpless to stop it. Maybe this is what drove him over the edge into a demented insanity. And why the hell no one had gotten the boy some counseling was a question that everyone would ask, but only he and B would know. There was no counseling for B's affliction. But the boy did make an attempt to try to help himself. He'd learned over time to focus only on a person's face, not on the numbers or letters floating above their head.

This was why when he first entered the head quarters, he had kept his face pointed away from everyone. When standing at a distance, it was hard not to notice the ghostly characters that identified people in his eyes.

Beyond had said that he was going to go 'see what he could do' to keep himself entertained. And literally, he had done that. But this was unforgivable.

Oh, and speak of the devil. Beyond came strolling down the hallway, barefoot and hands in his pockets. The grin was gone and he looked calm and relaxed. About ten feet away from the others, he stopped, a mildly curious expression on his face.

Before he could think, Light strode forward and hit him hard in the face. Beyond stumbled for a few feet, rightened up, and quickly dealt a swift blow back. His aim was a bit off and he hit his temple rather than his cheek, but it was powerful nonetheless.

Light began to figuratively see the red that B could literally see and charged like a bull into him, knocking him to the ground. Sitting on his chest, he got in two quick blows to his face, before he was knocked breathless by a jab to the chest. Before Light could fall fully to the floor, Beyond grabbed a handful of his hair and pulled him to his feet, then hit him again.

Light growled and each boy raised their fists at the same time. Just before their blows landed, L intercepted, pushing each one back, Light closer to the children and Beyond closer to the end of the hall.

"That's enough!" he said. Though the two glared at one another, L's commanding voice kept the bloodbath from continuing.

L had only let the fight drag on for so long because if he'd had attacked, he wouldn't have stopped until Beyond was either unconscious or dead. He knew his basic human side would've wanted that, but as the world's greatest detective, he couldn't allow himself that option. So, he'd let Light act in his place. The blows had been dealt evenly, so the fight was fair.

Suddenly, they heard the classic, eerie chuckling. Beyond put his fingers to his mouth, then pulled them back to look at them. They were covered in blood. Still laughing, he ran the hand down his forelocks, trailing them down his face and his neck. Red streaks contrasted against his pale skin. Between the strands of hair, his seemingly crimson eyes locked on Light.

"That was fun. We should spar again sometime. If you think you can handle me."

Light had a quick retort ready, but the boy turned around and slouched off, leaving only the echo of his laugh behind.

Gathering the boys to him, L and Light made their way back downstairs in silence. Light was ticked that the fight had ended so soon.

But L was ticked at Roger for having sent the boy to him! It wasn't like he could just send the boy to another orphanage either. He'd already been kicked out of four others for similar stunts like this. Yes, kicked out of an orphanage…what a shame.

As soon as the rest of the task force saw them, questions began to fly. L decided to let Light handle them as well and instead retreated to his laptop in the corner. The boys sank quietly to the carpeted floor of the room. Mello and Matt seemed calm and spoke in whispers to each other. Near was still shaken and crouched next to L's armchair. Every now and then, the detective would absent-mindedly reach down and tentatively pat his head.

L's mind drew a blank as to what to do about Beyond. Sweets helped him think. He reached over to the plate of food that was generally beside his seat, but felt nothing. Looking over, he noticed only some crumbs left from the cookies that had been there. Then it dawned on him. That conniving bastard had stolen them!

Okay, he could screw with the kids' heads. He could rumble with Light. But when he stole his sweets he was messing with the wrong detective! That was it! He would avenge his double chocolate-chip cookies if it were the last thing he did! But for now, he'd just have to go ask Mogi if he still had that strawberry he had given him…

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Alright, I really don't have much to add here at the end. Please be sure to check out the poll. Until next chapter, peace out!


	6. The Start of Something New?

Oh, chay, another chapter! ^_^ This'll probably be my last for now until the one I post on the 18th…my B-day! And I'm sure it's going to have something to do with Beyond Birthday…heh-heh…Beyond Birthday…heh-heh…my birthday…xD! Sorry, you can tell I'm back to being my silly self again. Anyways, this chapter highlights our younger characters for once with very little mention of B. Don't worry though, I'm just saving his crazy self for later! With that said, I hope everyone still enjoys it!

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The Start of Something New?

(Yes, that's a High School Musical song!)

Soon after discovering his missing cookies, another thought came to L. Where the hell was Watari?! It wasn't like him to be gone this long. He hadn't even come back for his sub sandwich (which Beyond had taken it upon himself to gobble down. If L didn't watch him, that kid would eat him out of house and home.). Generally the elderly man would've been restocked his sweets supply, but he hadn't seen him since the children had been dropped off. Was he…avoiding them?! Wow…that bad, huh? L couldn't fault him.

And speaking of the children, it was now after eight p.m. What little he did know about parenting told him that it was probably a good time now to send them to bed. Looking over to Mello (the only one he could visibly see) he said, "Alright, I think it's time you three hit the sack."

"Aw, c'mon, L! I'm not even tired!" Mello whined.

L considered this. He himself could stay up for days at a time with no rest. Could they as well? Then again, did he really want to be up with them that long?! A very un-L-like part of him in the back of his brain yelled 'Hell no!'

"Actually, you might think you don't need to rest, but once you close your eyes, you'll be amazed at how long you sleep," L said to him. When he had at first started solving cases, he'd realized this himself. Over time though, his body had come to learn that he shouldn't rest more than three or four hours every three or four days. Hence how he'd grown the circles under his eyes.

"You don't sleep for days at a time!" Mello pointed out.

L frowned. Was he a mind reader? "Yes, that's true, but I'm grown." That same strange part of his mind went 'Ooohhh! Bad move, L! Very lame excuse.'

And Mello called it. "Pfft, that's weak! You were my age when you'd started solving cases! And nobody put a curfew on you!"

Oh, how this boy was sharp. Mentally, he argued back, 'Yeah, but there was only one of me! And I was a good child! You four can be like Children of the Korn (sp?) at times!' Verbally he said, "Yes, true. But honestly, I was mainly raised by Watari. If he felt that I didn't need a curfew, then that was his choice on my upbringing. Not to mention, I was also solving cases, as you pointed out. I could've shirked solving cases for sleep, but then…there wouldn't be an L."

Mello thought about this for a moment, pondering. Then an obvious idea hit him and L could've sworn he saw a light bulb come on above his head. "Then you just proved my point! One of us, me, Matt, or Near are very likely to succeed you! If that's going to happen, then we're going to need to be like you! That means, long nights with no sleep!" Smiling goofily to himself, he stood up and started doing the cha-cha-cha while chanting "I'm not going to bed, yeah! I'm not going to bed, yeah!"

L frowned again. He was tired of arguing with this boy. "Oh, you're going to bed, damnit," he muttered quietly. He got up from his seat and walked over to him. Standing very close to him, his hunched shoulders created a dark shadow over Mello. The blonde slowly stopped his dancing, turning to meet him with wide eyes.

"Uh…hi, L" he said sheepishly.

"Mello. Bed. Now." L said, pointing to the door. Then he paused. "No, you three have been traveling and playing around. Bath first, then bed. Gather the other two and spread the word."

Mello looked like he was about to grumble, but L intensified his stare and Mello's protests died in his lungs. He gave a disdainful sniff, showing that he wasn't going to let this get to him. Then he started to travel the room.

He looked like he was searching for something, before he paused in front of the couch that Aizawa and Matsuda happened to be sitting on. Getting down on his knees, he fumbled underneath it. His body jerked forward before evidently grabbing something. Pulling back, they saw the disheveled form of Matt, still intensely playing a video game.

"Come on, Matty. Bath time," Mello said in a surprisingly gentle tone. Pulling the boy to his feet, he took one of his hands while Matt used the other to continuously press a firing button for the game.

Mello pulled him along until he came to a potted plant in the corner. There, he crouched down again. When he rightened up, Near was holding his other free hand, twirling a strand of his hair.

As they passed L, Mello flashed him a triumphant smile. He didn't always need parental supervision! He led the group out of the room and L could help but smile at the scene. Mello, being brotherly? Well, well, who would've guessed.

On the hallway where their bedrooms were, there was a large central bathroom. Mello dragged the two in there, then left them by the entrance while he went further in to start the water. On the side of the tub were several bottles to create bubbles. He randomly mixed several and happily watched as they filled the tub.

A few minutes passed and once it reached the appropriate height, he turned the water off. Mello stood to turn back to Matt and Near, but they were gone! He ran out into the hall. Another room light was on. Matt's. He went into his room to see him still playing the game, now on his bed. Near was on the floor, nodding off. Mello held back a grin. The kid had been napping behind the plant a moment ago.

"Hey, listen! L put me in charge for the moment, so you two have to listen to me." Mello said, hands on his hips as he addressed them like a mother.

Matt spluttered, then said "Who died and made you boss?!"

Mello growled in irritation. "I just said, L!"

"L died?"

"You know what I mean!"

"No, sorry, I don't. Unless L is no longer in commission to give orders, I don't think I should have to listen to you."

That was it. Mello stomped over to his best friend and ripped the game away from him. Then he went over to the window and opened it.

Matt gasped. "You wouldn't!"

Mello narrowed his eyes dangerously. "Try me."

Matt made an attempt to come closer, but Mello dangled the game out the window even further. Realizing that he was at a loss, Matt held his hands up in surrender.

"Alright, fine. Geez, don't be such a drama queen."

Mello rolled his eyes, but closed the window. He put the game on the floor, then kicked it under the bed. Matt wouldn't mind, he'd probably crawl under there some time or another to play it. Grabbing Matt's and Near's hands again, he led them back to the bathroom.

He tested the water again to make sure it was just right, then peeled off his shirt. He stopped and glanced back at the other two. "Aren't you guys getting in?"

Matt narrowed his eyes. "With you? Ha, you'd probably be a total totalitarian and make sure we washed behind our ears twenty times or something. I'd rather take my chances bathing with Beyond than…okay, no I wouldn't." Matt said, realizing just what that might've been like. It wouldn't have been pretty.

With a shrug, he started to take his own shirt off. Mello was already down to his boxers. Near tried to follow their example, but was having trouble undoing the buttons on his shirt. Mello groaned, couldn't this kid do anything right? He walked over to him and pushed his hands out the way. Methodically, he unbuttoned it himself, then helped him pull his small arms out of the baggy sleeves.

Without further ado and with absolutely no shame, Mello stripped off the underwear and climbed in the tub. He gave a contented sigh. Ah, now this was more like it!

Matt was still giving him a skeptical look, but finished undressing himself and also got in. Near was still having difficulty untangling himself from his jeans, making both Mello and Matt face palm. They had to remember, Near was only three.

Finally, the boy managed to discard his clothes and slowly crawled over the side of the tub…but slipped and fell in. Matt's legs, floating in the water, somewhat held his head down. The boy struggled, then eventually managed to wrench his head up, gasping for air. And then, after gathering enough oxygen in his lungs, he let out a loud shriek, followed by him bursting into tears.

The piercing wails rang off the tiles, hurting the other two's eardrums. "Near, shut up!" Mello shouted, hitting him on his back. It seemed to work. Near snapped out of his fit, subdued to only whimpering.

But the crying had went on long enough to alert L. "What is it?!" the man screamed, bursting into the bathroom. When he had at first heard the cries, he had hoped that Beyond hadn't come back to terrorize them again.

"Whoa, L, a little privacy, eh!" Mello shouted. L only gave him a pointed look.

"Don't be ridiculous, Mello. What happened to Near?"

Mello shrugged, not feeling like answering.

"The kid almost drowned himself, but he's fine now," Matt clarified, hands behind his head as he relaxed. Mello flicked his eyes at him, then copied his position. He tried to close his eyes and imagine himself at some kind of spa resort.

L came further into the room, shutting the door behind him. Mello snapped his eyes open, but Matt remained slouching. Oh no…L wasn't one of _those _type of people, was he?!

The man crouched next to the tub. Grabbing a washcloth from a rack, he dipped it in the water, then rung it out over Near's head. The boy giggled. "Feels like what it might be like to have an egg cracked on your head," he said. His first and longest words in over an hour.

Mello frowned as he watched L almost impassively wash Near's back. Why the hell did big-headed Near get all the attention?! With a huff, he situated himself against the side of the tub, his back facing L. The man quirked an eyebrow that Mello didn't see. Then, dipping the cloth in the water again, he began to scrub his back as well.

Matt seemed content to stay where he was, but was jerked from his musings by a large hand. L grabbed him and pulled him closer, making him participate in the group bath. Like a cub hating to be licked by its mother, he mentally grumbled as L wetted his hair and washed it.

After all three were cleaned, L stood back up to grab towels. He handed Mello and Matt theirs and gratefully they climbed out and dried themselves off. But for Near, L wrapped his towel around him and lifted him out the tub. Like with Watari, the boy latched on, forcing L to dry him in his arms.

Now both Mello and Matt glared at him. Where the hell was the justice in this?! But they tried to act like it didn't matter. They weren't babies and they weren't about to kiss L's ass for attention.

But their dark thoughts started to melt away when they noticed the detective helping them redress. When had he brought pajamas with him? Oh well, who cared. They were warm and soft and Matt was grateful to L for grabbing his favorite ones, a simple red ensemble. Mello's was nearly the same, but was black. And Near…well, they didn't call him a baby for nothing. Near's had the characters from _Toy Story _on them. How fitting.

Still carrying the youngest, L guided each to their room. "Peace out!" Mello said when he reached his. Giving a two-fingered salute, he entered and shut the door. Matt only mumbled "'Night," when he got to his, silently sliding the door closed.

Near's room was next to Matt's. Sliding down from L, he put a thumb in his mouth and walked in on his slightly unsteady little kid legs. He said nothing, but nodded once to L before taking his leave.

Well, wasn't all of that interesting. He made his steady way back to the room where the others were at. Sitting back down at his precious Mac notebook, he rubbed the touchpad to clear the screensaver of the silver Cloister Black L, softly bouncing around the screen to a background of moving star-like orbs.

With a few clicks, he had up on his screen four different rooms shown in infer-red. One was Beyond's room. The boy was there, curled on his side awake and staring at a wall. It was too early for him to actually go to sleep. L wondered what all went on inside his head…

The other three monitors showed Near, Mello, and Matt's rooms. The three were seemingly asleep, but suddenly, Matt sat up in his bed. He rummaged around under his pillow until he found another hand-held game. Flicking it on, L watched as he climbed out of bed, the glow illuminating his face. He left his room and walked down the hall…to Mello's room. Without knocking, Matt simply entered.

Mello sat up, clearly annoyed at the intrusion. Matt either didn't notice it or didn't care, because he promptly hopped up on the bed, grabbed some covers from the foot of the bed, flicked off the game, and proceeded to fall asleep.

L was trying to process this when he saw movement from Near's room. The boy also had gotten up. Near grabbed a small blanket, put his thumb in his mouth, and shuffled out of his bedroom. Like Matt, he headed for Mello's. He quietly opened the door, slipping inside. He padded over to the bed where Mello and Matt stared at him wide-eyed. But Near easily climbed up onto the mattress as well, over onto Mello's other side. Though he had his own blanket, he somewhat forced the other boys to surrender some of the covers. Holding his blanket to tightly and still sucking on his thumb, he settled down.

Mello and Matt stared at him for a moment longer and then met each other's gazes. They shrugged, then rolled over to go back to sleep themselves.

Well, wasn't this a surprise, L thought. Despite all of their quarrels, perhaps deep down, they honestly cared for one another. And maybe even him? Then he sighed. Now if only he could get Beyond to behave! He changed the screen back to his work, but couldn't shake this new warm feeling he felt all over. What was it called? Oh yeah, happiness.

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Okay, there you have it. Hope you liked it! Oh, and the polls are still open for awhile longer (I think I'll end it on my birthday…so, get there before Monday folks!). Now be kind and hit that little button beneath this to review!


	7. Beyond the Limit

Okay, so I somewhat had a change of plans on my updating. Quite a few people inspired me to write a chapter taking place in the middle of the night. No, this isn't the real chapter I had planned, but I thought this would be an interesting sub-plot or something. So, please enjoy. Oh, and if you've not read my notice board (the bold letters beside my display pic), for kicks and giggles, please do. And if you've still not voted yet, exercise your rights and do so!

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Beyond the Limit

Matt woke up to a loud rumble. He tried to ignore it, but as though having a mind of its own, the rumble sounded again, louder this time. He sat up and looked out the window. A bright flash filled the room before a loud crashing noise was heard. Oh. Thunder. Nothing new.

Well, that's what he _said. _What he was actually doing was shaking a bit. The thunder he could get over. But lightning…he'd heard and read too many horror stories about people being struck by lightning. And they were currently in a very tall building…

He tried to roll over and ignore it, but the flashes kept intruding even into the back of his eyelids. He grabbed a pillow and threw that over his head, but now his mind's eye was full of the horrible electricity.

Tossing and turning, he fought not to notice it. On one of his turns, his foot kicked out and hit someone.

Mello sat up, yelling. "Near, if you don't quit your damn tossing and turning, I'm gonna—oh, it's you, Matt," he said, realizing who it was.

But his voice did happen to wake up Near. The boy was sitting up slowly, when the lightning flashed again. His whole body went rigid.

"Oh no," Mello said, looking at him.

The boy's eyes were wide as he stared out the window. Slowly, his mouth opened, as though about to scream.

Mello threw himself forward to clap a hand over his mouth. He was too late.

Tipping his head back slightly, Near's mouth opened a little more and…he sneezed.

Mello blinked at him. Was that it? He just had a sneeze?

Near softly shook his head, sniffled, sleepily wiped his eyes, and then snuggled back down under the covers.

Mello and Matt's eyes met each other's and they both sighed. Well, wasn't that a relief. They each covered back up as well, though Mello remained oblivious to Matt's inner turmoil.

On another floor of the building, a lone figure stalked the hallways. Beyond was restless. The trip from Winchester to Japan hadn't tired him out at all and now he wanted to do _something. _Besides, tomorrow was a very special day. But there was no harm in starting the festivities early…

His room was on the seventh floor. He was heading to the ninth. With his amused grin plastered on his face, he slunk along like one of the shadows on the wall.

He sauntered down the end of the appropriate floor, the room he needed being the eighth one on the right. He paused for a moment to listen inside. He heard nothing. Quietly, he pushed open the door, slipped inside, and then quickly closed it behind him.

His shinigami eyes allowed him to see very well in the dark, so he didn't need to take time to adjust to the lack of lighting inside as opposed to all the windows in the long hallways that were filtering in the moonlight.

Many rooms in the building were like suites. His own was, though L hadn't given the younger one's that luxury. The part of the room he was currently in was a living area. Off to the left was the small kitchen. Continuing past it was a small hallway for the bedrooms and bathroom.

He was naturally quiet, so tip-toeing was pointless. Just as he was about to walk down the hallway, he paused next to the fridge. He juggled with whether he should open it or not. To do so would cast an orange glow into the room, giving him away. Then again…maybe this person had something interesting to snack on.

The latter won out and Beyond snatched the door open. Before the light could come on, he put his finger to the small button just inside and on the ceiling of the fridge, keeping it from coming on. Utilizing the full power of his strong eyesight, he scanned the shelves. There was next to nothing in it. Either this person didn't have the money to buy anything or was simply too lazy. Beyond hated empty fridges, since he was nearly always hungry. And he especially hated one with _no jam_!

He did notice a jar of jelly though. He thought about taking it, but refused to settle for less. To B, a person's fridge (or food supply in general) spoke a lot about someone. This person must've ate out a lot, probably. He checked the cabinets and found them just as barren. Beyond narrowed his eyes. He decided he didn't like this person very much.

…Of course he refused to also consider the fact that everyone who was staying there were only temporary guests and really didn't need to have a full stock of food. Instead, B stuck to his conviction of not liking the person…nobody liked admitting they were wrong in judgment.

Continuing down the hall, the first room he came to was the bathroom. He went in, never turning on the light. Staring at his reflection in the mirror, he reveled in how much he loved his permanently red irises. Ah, if only everyone else could see them…that fearful look that was so common when he simply walking into a room would surely be multiplied tenfold.

Suddenly he frowned. He had to use the bathroom. Here, in another person's room. Then he shrugged. Pfft, what the hell.

There in the dark he stood, draining the lizard and mentally humming a tune. When he was finished, he didn't bother flushing, but did take the time to quietly wash his hands. Then he realized a mistake. The wet bar of soap. Alright, so he'd dispose of that. He picked it up and put it in his pocket.

Then there was the matter of the water in the sink. Using a small hand towel, he dried it out. Wait…now there was a missing towel to handle! Beyond gave an exasperated sigh and basically said, "Screw it!" There was no winning this one. He put the soap back, threw the towel in a laundry hamper and flushed the toilet. The person was most definitely awake by now. So, instead of scadaddling out of there, he took his time. Picking up a hair brush, he gently ran it through his locks, inwardly proud of how soft his hair was.

Then he spotted a toothbrush. What the hell? He had just added the toothpaste to it and was raising it to his mouth when the room light came on.

There Matsuda stood, hair tousled from sleep but eyes wide open in shock. "What the fuck are you doing, Beyond?!" he shouted. He gave a horrified gasp as he noticed that his toothbrush had perhaps been inside his mouth.

"If you must know, I was going to brush my teeth," Beyond said in a quiet voice. Amusement glinted in his eyes.

"Why the hell with my toothbrush?!" Matsuda continued to yell. "Where the hell is yours?"

"Shhh," Beyond said, holding a slender finger to his mouth. "Not so loud," he said calmly, the grin now traveling to his lips.

"B, you're fuckin' crazy man!" Matsuda said. Never in his life had he ever imagined anything like this happening. He sighed and shook his head, but stopped as his eyes landed on the toilet. His rage boiled over.

"YOU PISSED ALL OVER MY TOILET!!!" He screamed, rounding on the boy…who was no longer there. Just in those few precious seconds when he's looked away, the teen had slipped out.

Matsuda tore from the room, searching the suite, all to no avail. B was already down a floor, toothbrush now in mouth. Happily, he enjoyed the mint flavor that would have to do until he could properly get some jam.

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Well, I had quite a bit of the toddlers and B in this chapter. Also, I do plan to have more to the children than just the three always doing cute things (Near!). And the "tomorrow" B was speaking of had a double meaning…tomorrow for the story and…well, though currently tomorrow for me isn't it, my profile (that headline) explains things better. So, check it out! And please review!

p.s. Forgive me for constantly speaking of "that day"; I can't believe I'm actually excited about it…yeck! ^_^


	8. Birthday Bedlam

Okay, as promised, today is my B-day chapter! I'm closing the poll later on so get your last votes in soon. I'll admit, this chapter did and didn't go quite as I had wanted it to. I have everything I wanted in it, but…I feel like it ran in circles in a way. Granted, I started writing this chapter at like, ten at night, got caught up trying to help a friend get over their relationship issues on MSN…they sent me a funny Kingdom Hearts vid that they'd been viewing to try to get over their pain, I started watching _more _funny KH vids, and in the end, I finished this chapter at like, three in the morning when I was finally able to pry myself away from YouTube. Oh, and I was fielding all the happy birthday calls, texts, and whatnot. So, relish in the joy of yet another part of "Laments" folks. I've got some clothes shopping to do…a girl needs a nice birthday suit, lol!

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Birthday Bedlam

"Look, all I'm saying is that if Matsuda wants to leave because of this, I'm not gonna stop him," Aizawa was saying to the rest of the task force when L descended the stairs to the main floor that morning.

"Why would Matsuda want to leave?" L asked mildly. Quite frankly he too couldn't care less if he left but he had to put on appearances of caring about him.

"It seems Beyond broke in his room yesterday and kinda wreaked havoc on his bathroom," Soichiro said. "Ryuzaki, you were put in charge of the boy, are you going to do something about this?"

_What can I do? _L mentally said. "I'm working on a solution. Please be patient. It seems that I've been careless in my observing him. Generally I don't sleep but two times a week…I suppose yesterday actually tired me out," he mused almost to himself, a finger hooked in his bottom lip.

"In the meantime, please be vigilant in making sure your own rooms are secure. Locking the door at night helps a lot and I'm sure Matsuda hadn't locked his. But this probably isn't enough. It wouldn't surprise me if Beyond knows how to pick locks. Place a chair under the door knob as well. It's an old trick, but mainly it will serve the purpose of making a noise to awake you should he try to enter."

The others nodded but you could see their minds turning as they tried to think of any other ways of keeping safe from the menace.

Quiet padding was heard by the stairs and Mello led the other two to the group. He looked open and alert, going on analytical mode as to why everyone was crowded around like that. Near held a toy in one arm, twirling a strand of hair with the other. His face no longer seemed that of an innocent three year-old, but was also quietly observing the situation. And Matt…Matt looked haggard. The lightning had kept him awake all night, flinching everytime he heard it crack. Now his hair looked wild and he had slight shadows under his eyes. Another night or two like that and he'd look like some kind of offspring of L…on the mother's side, of course.

"Morning, gents," Mello greeting cordially. To L he said, "I'm sure you already know what we want. Let us not repeat yesterday's near fiasco."

L narrowed his eyes in confusion for a moment before it dawned on him. Yes, the great L actually had to pause to consider what it was this child wanted. "Food," L said with distaste in his mouth. For him, coffee loaded with sugar was often enough to suffice him as breakfast.

Mello nodded once in confirmation. "But I have a special request that I'd like," he added, just when L was starting to go over food options.

Now the man narrowed his eyes in an agitated way. Lovely. He didn't even want to know what Mello would consider breakfast.

"I request one plate of over-easy eggs, three platters of bacon, a basket of fresh, assorted muffins, a helping of sausage, a stack of French toast, three different types of cereal, none of them containing bran or flakes (Peanut Butter Cap'N Crunch is a good example), a gallon of milk, several dishes of fruit salad, and an extra pile of Belgian waffles. And this is just my order. Matt, what will you have?"

Matt was about to reply, but L cut him off. "Heck no," he said, eyes pinched shut tight in his annoyance. And yes, he was aware that he'd actually just said the closest to a cuss word out loud as he'd ever had, but these children seemed to be making him do a lot of firsts. "Mello, that's enough food for everyone here and you're claiming that's just your order? Selfish much?"

Mello looked affronted at actually being called selfish. "What's wrong with being hungry?" he snapped.

"Because you're not _that _hungry," L said in a hard tone.

"Pfft, you're not me, how do you know?"

The detective was about to reply until he realized something. He was arguing with the child again! It was a huge mistake parents made. The child was to listen to commands, no ifs, ands, or buts about it. When you let them argue with you, you were giving them a chance to wheedle you down on your resolve. No, L had to be strong. He would _not _fall into that trap!

"Mello, don't make me tell you again. The answer is no. Now, if you want to order that for _everyone_, then I have no objections. Other than that, please change your choice of breakfast."

'_Don't make me tell you again,' _L had said…just what if…

Mello made to reply, but the other was ahead of him, "You know, you look suitable for being a choir boy at a church. Perhaps you'd enjoy it more at a convent?"

Where the hell had this come from?! "Um…no, I'll pass," Mello said nervously. "And, I guess we can order all of that for everyone."

L gave him his rare, goofy smile while on the inside he smirked victoriously.

Another sound of footsteps was heard as Light walked into the room, looking impeccably perfect as always. Well almost. He raised a wrist to check the time, but froze in horror as he spotted something. The tiniest piece of lint was on his cuff. Using his thumb and forefinger, he picked it up and flicked it away as though it were contaminated. Then he quickly smoothened out his features, gearing up for his daily acting.

L spotted the change instantly and knew he was getting ready to dish up a steaming hot platter of bullshit sprinkled with his constant lies.

"Hello. How is everyone this morning?" the brunette smiled.

Soichiro nodded and clapped him on the back as some sort of welcome. Damn he was proud of this boy! Sachiko had Sayu for all the girly things but he had Light with all his brains and wisdom. Thank god he'd had a son first!

Light blushed and acted embarrassed by his fathers' affection…which actually really wasn't an act. His father hardly ever touched him! "Uh, dad, that's all not necessary," he muttered.

"Oh. Yes, you're right," Soichiro said and dropped his hand. L watched on, forcing himself to not barf at the tender moment. He hated such things.

"Good morning, Light-kun. How are you?" L greeted formally. Light's eyes snapped on him. He could sense the small sneer in the man's voice.

"Morning, Ryuzaki," he said. What snide comments had the detective come equipped with today?

L only regarded him a moment longer with those dark eyes before turning away. He had an order to place. And just where the hell was Watari still?!

And then…the person of the hour finally entered…

It was almost dramatic. Beyond walked quietly but since all eyes were on him, he might as well have stomped into the room. He was wearing complete black, black jeans, black shirt, and black socks on his feet.

He came up short next to L, but the contrast of the black against L's white seemed like a tangible thing to show his evilness against L's justice.

"And how are we this fine morning?" he asked everyone. This time, he didn't bother to try and not look at the names and numbers. It was too much of an effort and he didn't feel like doing any work today.

"B, what's wrong with you?!" Aizawa asked him, breaking the silence. "Breaking into Matsuda's room? What was all that about?"

Beyond regarded him dryly through the thick bangs of his hair. "It was only harmless fun. Don't tell me precious Matsu can't take a simple joke."

"You call stealing his toothbrush harmless fun?!" Ide said. His naturally hard eyes were completely cold. "How would you like it if someone took a personal item of yours?"

Beyond held a finger to his lip in thought, copying L again. Then he lowered his eyes to the man. "It would be very painful," he said in a very good mimic of how L sometimes answered questions that were meant to evoke pity or empathy. Though like the detective, he honestly felt nothing.

Ide knew this and gave a growl of frustration before stomping off.

Beyond only calmly watched him go, smirking as he read off his lifespan…

L turned to him. "Beyond, I don't quite understand your antics, but it's starting to hinder my investigation. So…I'm grounding you."

Beyond's mouth twitched up for a moment, but he quickly composed himself again, eyes going deadpan. "Grounded, eh? For how long?"

"Mm, a week," L said. "You are to stay in your room at all times. I will bring your food to you and you will be on surveillance 24/7."

Beyond stared at him a moment longer before suddenly breaking out into a horrid grin, eyes wild. "Is this so, L?! Mmm-hahaha…the great detective L trying to be a parent!" His shoulders shook as he laughed. "Yes, well, I guess we should at least commend you for trying. But you can't be _best _at everything!"

Swiftly, he sharply scratched the back of his hand, causing blood to spill. Before anyone could move, he walked up to L. Running the fingers of his right hand in the blood, he then brought up a finger and drew a B on his cheek. L of course couldn't see it himself, but he knew what it was.

When he was done, Beyond threw back his head and laughed even wilder. "Today's a special day, _L,_" he whispered, now staring at him through his messy locks. "Why, it's my birthday! You're not going to ground me on such a special day, are you?" he didn't ask it as though he were really worried, but more of a taunt.

L was in shock. He had blood on him. Someone else's blood. He actually felt sick. With extreme vigor he wiped it off onto his sleeve, but now he could see the blood. He stood in a frightened, paralyzed state, not being able to take his eyes off of his shirt sleeve.

Light had a vendetta to settle with B, so anyone that was against him, he was for. He walked over to L and pulled out a sanitary napkin, wiping the blood off of him. L didn't seem to notice. Forcefully, he grabbed his face and turned it away from the bloodied shirt. "Get ahold of yourself, Ryuzaki," he said, shaking him. It had the desired effect. L blinked a few times, then his eyes focused back on B.

"You wish to have your birthday free? Alright. In fact, I take back the groundation. Happy birthday, Beyond." There was no emotion in his voice.

L hadn't given in to what Beyond wanted. But dealing with the boy required a different tactic than what he'd use for the younger ones. Caging B wasn't the answer…it was clear that everytime he was punished, he only came back with a new plan of disaster. Monitoring him was only half of the solution. He wasn't stalling when he kept telling the task force that he had to think up something…this kid truly was an enigma!

"Well then, now that that's been cleared," Beyond spoke up, seemingly "normal" again. "I only have two birthday requests. A jar of jam and a driver's license."

L did a double take. "Do you even know how to drive?" he asked. _Please say no…or perhaps yes? Then you can leave me be. Then again…Beyond and a vehicle…_

"Nope," Beyond said, shrugging a shoulder. "Which is why…" his eyes roamed the room. Everyone shifted to the side to be out of the line of their fire. The two black coals (only he could see his shinigami eyes) landed on Light. "I'd like Light to teach me."

Light glared at him. "What?! Why the hell would I teach you how to drive? You're not in your right state of mind, if you even have one. You'd probably do a hit and run the first chance you got!"

Beyond chewed on a fingernail, not looking at him. "Couldn't that be said about anybody? People that other's had assumed…sane…have done much worse crimes than me. And not teaching me how to drive will result in one of those things." He looked up at Light, smirking. "So. How about it? I only ask for an hour of your time. Fair?"

Light growled. How the hell was it this kid held so much sway over everyone?! Was it because everyone was terrified of him? Yeah, he was a fucking psychopath but hadn't _someone _dealt with a person on his level? As a police chief, his father had come across all sorts of mental issues in people. But even he seemed unnerved by B…

Soichiro suddenly stepped forward. "You're not going to be using my son as a driving instructor," he said coldly to Beyond. The boy quickly jerked his head up, but the man held his ground. "In fact, we ought to arrest you here on vandalism and breaking and entering charges. But it seems L is reluctant to have you behind bars. Regardless, you will have to find someone other than Light as a teacher."

Beyond blinked slowly at him, then totally blew him off with a very disinterested look, moving back to Light. Then he blinked and his eyes for once became very soft. "I…I'm sorry Light. You and I got off on the wrong foot. In fact, I'm sorry to all of you," Beyond said, looking at everyone. "This wasn't my intention. I've never really attempted to make friends, so I guess I'm doing everything wrong, huh?" he chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

_This is a damn lie!! _Light shouted in his mind. _Nobody's going to fall for this! No way in—_

He wasn't sure how it happened, but next thing he knew, he was sitting in a very nice and expensive vehicle in the large parking lot of the building. He quickly blinked and looked around him. What the hell?!!

"So, Light, I've buckled up. I believe my mirrors are good to go. I've got the car going. I believe I know how to put it in drive. Anything you want to add before I hit the gas?" Beyond said. Light jumped. Where the hell had he come from?!!

"Uh…n-no…I guess not." Light said in a dazed voice.

Beyond shrugged again. "Well, alrighty then. Here we go!"

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Back inside the building, L pondered to himself just how Beyond managed to manipulate them like that. He could clearly see that the boy was lying…and he knew Light must've as well, he was too sharp not to have. But…out of the blue, the others had fallen for it. Were they that eager to be on his good side? Grown men, terrified of a teenager?! No…this couldn't be who he had to work with!

Suddenly, a loud screeching was heard, then a crash. The sound of metal against metal filled everyone's ears. L was about to get up and rush to a window when the front doors of the complex slid open. Beyond jauntily strolled in, while Light stumbled after him, cradling an evidently hurt head. A small trail of blood trickled from a cut.

The dark haired boy was walking in L's direction, seemingly truly blissful. As he passed beside him though, he tossed something in the air for the man to catch. He did. It was a key.

"Oh, you're gonna need a new car. Man, that thing out there is a total mess!" Beyond said. Then he spotted something else. "Oh, you finally got me some jam! Mm, perfect!" He snagged the jar, opened it, and happily walked away, licking the sticky substance from his fingers.

And all L could do was stare at the only reminder left of Watari's precious 1930 limousine.

…

And just who the hell had given him the key for it to begin with?!!! A small voice in the back of L's mind said him…but he refused to accept that!

Oh, Watari was going to kill him!

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Though I'm now a huge fangirl of Beyond's, there actually is a reason for why I've put his birthday in May. I believe it was said in the novel (if not there, then perhaps the Death Note 13: How to Read book…can't quite remember which) that Beyond had left Wammy's for Los Angeles in May. I'd like to think that perhaps he left shortly after his 18th birthday. They did say that Beyond and L didn't look exactly alike, that Naomi Misora stated that Beyond looked like he was the one doing the copying and that L seemed more as the original. Also, they described B as only being a young man…that could be a teenager to someone L's age. Anyways, for this story, and all for humor's sake, he and I are sharing a birthday!

Which brings me to another point…while writing this, another idea hit me. And unfortunately, it totally counters all the voting you guys did. What if I had B and L chained together instead? This is only a _very _tiny thought, only about four percent, no, make that two percent (see, even I can act like Lawliet!). I'm not putting up a poll unless you guys would rather I do. Saying yay or nay in your reviews will suffice (no, that's not a clever ruse to get more either, lol!). Alrighty, enough of this. I do ask that you review though. A.D. Williams, out!


	9. Three's Company

Wow, so much has happened since my last update…on my birthday. Seems somewhat like a lifetime ago! Well, the day in itself was lovely, I suppose. I kinda froze up when some guy that was hitting on my friend was pushed on me by her…I kept mentally screaming "He's verbal sloppy seconds!" since if he'd been interested in me in the first place, he would've said something. So, instead, I pulled a total Hinata from Naruto, blushed, muttered stuff, fidgeted and in the end, vowed never to go back into that damn store! Oh, and I also found out the 'net had been cut off that evening. Eek! But, I kept myself preoccupied writing and reading…reading the Twilight books…oh, Amanda, what has happened to you?! ^_^ Which you know that means there's soon to be a fanfic from me about it, right? It'll be comedy of course…oh, to twist Bella and Edward around my finger…

Also, that upcoming Saturday, our house nearly caught on fire again! This time it was our oven. We believe it was the pan that was being used since it was the only thing being broiled. And go figure I'm once again the person to stumble upon the flames…I knew my mom should've kept a better eye on the bacon she was baking! Then again, it seems that everytime her bf leaves town, this happens. We've come to the conclusion that we're not using any cooking appliances or the laundry room when he leaves! Oh wait…he's gone right at the moment I'm typing this…and mom's cooking…*runs to shut everything off* lol!

Another interesting thing is that I _finally _got at least my driver's permit! Yes, twenty years old and just now starting (still can't drive though!). But remember the Hinata reference above? Imagine that behind the wheel now! I'm such a nervous wreck at times…

Anyways, besides all of this, I'm still here writing, folks! This chapter continues with Beyond's birthday (even if it no longer is mine!). I don't want to give too much away here, so please read it!

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Three's Company

Light gently held a pack of ice to his swollen skull. Beyond had thankfully disappeared somewhere. Light knew that he hadn't ended up in the car with him due to some kind of powerful mind control or anything else so…sci-fi. Ever so vaguely, he remembered discussing something with Beyond…something about…

That was it! He and B had made a deal. Driving lessons for Beyond leaving him alone the rest of the day after that. But…perhaps he'd been a bit hasty in agreeing on this deal. The car had crashed into a metal light post, one that hadn't even been anywhere near in their path. B had _swerved _and hit it! Further more, his side of the vehicle was just fine! Only Light's half had the dent. And due to him stupidly not wearing a seat belt, he'd cracked his head on the dashboard.

So, as he sat in the room with all the others with perhaps a concussion, he was half mad at himself and half mad with Beyond. He'd just agreed to try and teach a kid to drive who had intentions of killing him. And if Ryuzaki continued to put off handling him, he'd do it himself…and it wouldn't be pretty.

But of course not an hour can go by now at the headquarters without something going wrong. Why would this hour be any different? In the middle of his musing, a loud yell was heard, then a thunk. Light made to get up and run to see what had happened, but a glance over to L stilled him.

L didn't even seem like he cared! Without missing a beat, he continued to type on his laptop.

"Ryuzaki, I think you might want to go see what that was," Light said to him.

L did stop for a moment to look up at him. Then his eyes went back "Not like it's going to matter. The damage evidently has been done. And besides, I can't keep stopping my work everytime the littlest thing goes wrong. I do have more than just the Kira investigation to work on. Since you seem to care so much, why don't you go check it out?"

Light growled. "Oh, going to make me do your dirty work now?"

L sighed, clearly holding back his annoyance. "You were the one who jumped up like you were going to leave anyways. It wasn't until you noticed my lack of action that you stalled. Please, don't let me deter you. If you're curious as to what has happened, then by all means, go see what it was."

Light looked at him a moment longer before whipping around on a heel and walking out. He didn't have far to go. The first thing he noticed was a black and blonde tangle on the floor.

_Mello?! _A sick feeling flooded his stomach. This was it. Beyond had finally killed one of the children.

Heart filled with dread, he slowly walked over to the boy. He knelt down beside the form, then gently pulled the child into his lap. His eyes were closed, mouth still slightly open from a sound that would never be completed.

Light couldn't help it. He buried his face next to the child's head and began to weep.

L finally decided to come see what had happened (his own curiosity had won out), but halted when he saw Light and Mello. All feeling drained from his body and he fought to control himself. Oh, B…why? He asked the question heaven-wards, thus looking up at the ceiling…and noticing a rather large hole in it.

Narrowing his eyes, he passed by Light to get a closer look. He couwld actually see about three floors up due to several more holes in the ceilings (or floors) of them as well. Who the hell…?!

Then, from the very top of the floors, a tiny redhead and an even smaller snow-haired head could be seen.

"Oh, hi L!" Matt said in a strangely enthusiastic voice. "You like our handiwork? Oh, and could you tell Mello to stop being so melodramatic? The idiot's just fine."

L guessed that he didn't know that Mello was no longer with them. It was better he broke the news to him now then later. "Matt…Mello is…"

Out the corner of his eye, he saw movement. Light was leaning back up, looking shocked. Mello's body had sat up, eyes open, and was rubbing his head.

"Yeowch!" he muttered. "Damn if I ever decide to do that again…" He looked up through the multiple holes to the other two. "Next time Near, _you're _playing test dummy!"

"What the hell--?!" Light said, completely shocked.

Mello looked at him for a moment, then violently wiped the side of his face. "Arrgh!! You cried all over me?! You big ass baby!"

L was too shocked himself to reproach him for his mouth. So…the holes had been their idea. Beyond hadn't murdered the boy. A small part of him was so relieved, he could've done a back flip.

"Mello," L said to him, finding his voice. "Just what is the meaning of the holes in the ceiling?"

Mello stood up, looking very energetic. He grabbed L's hand and pulled him over to get a better view. "They're like portals! Why walk down stairs when you can be from the top floor to the bottom in less than ten seconds? We're still working the kinks out of it, but when it's finished, everyone's gonna want to use them!"

What the hell?!

Mello looked up at the other two. "Okay people, back to work. What needs to happen is that each hole needs to somewhat overlap. For example, when you fall down the first hole, instead of continuing to fall through all of them, the hole needs to allow space for the person to instead land on the floor. That way they can decide on whether to continue down to the bottom. Alright, let's move it folks! I'm not paying you to sit around!"

Mello gave L a cute, kiddy smile and began to walk off.

"Wait!" L said, stopping him. He turned to look at him. "Where did you find the tools for this?!"

Mello smirked. "You might want to talk to the guys you hired to build this place. Matt found a chainsaw in his closet, Near found a hammer in his dresser, and I found a whole room with ply boards and stuff." He walked away and was gone.

A chainsaw in the closet?!!! What the hell was in Beyond's room?!

Without thinking twice, L dashed off. Over his shoulder he said, "Light, go take that stuff from them!" Light got up and ran after Mello.

He himself didn't stop until he'd reached the teenager's floor. And it might as well have been his floor. No one else stayed on it. In fact, nearly everyone except the children had a floor to themselves.

He didn't even bother knocking, the room was really his anyways. Barging in, he scanned the room. Then his eyes landed on him. Beyond was innocently enough reading a book on the couch in his living room. Alright, it was more manga, Inuyasha at that…Inuyasha?! On a small table beside him was an old Naruto one as well. Quite…surprising. Believe it.

But without any explanations, L began tearing apart the bedroom. He ripped open the dresser and threw the clothes all over. Then he pulled out the drawers and discarded them carelessly to the side. He found nothing.

Next he tore open his closet. Beyond hadn't hung up anything and there was nothing on the shelves. All that was in there were his empty traveling bags. L grabbed these, unzipping and feeling around in every pouch. Nothing again.

The small bedside tables and behind them held nothing, he only found a black sock when he checked under the living room couch, and the kitchen cabinets and such checked out. Nothing anywhere.

During all of this, Beyond had mildly watched him, thoroughly curious as to his actions. As L finally flopped down on another couch, panting from the exertion, he finally allowed himself a normal smirk.

"Did you find what you were looking for?" he asked him.

L saw the smirk and very nearly flicked the boy his middle finger. He held back the urge though. "You know that I didn't or I would've confronted you with it," he said.

In the brief moments that he'd been laying there, an idea occurred to L. Of course if B had any weapons or such, they wouldn't still be in his room. He'd have removed them to another location. The building had over sixty floors, roughly five to eight rooms on each. There was no possible way he could search all of them, even with the task forces' help.

Alright, this solved it. "Beyond, would you come with me? You're free to bring your book." L stood up, hunched over as usual, hands in his pockets. Beyond picked up a seemingly scrap piece of paper and inserted it into the book to mark his place. Then he picked up his Naruto manga and put both under an arm. Shoving his own hands in his pockets, he followed L out of the room in almost the same fashion, minus the slouch.

L had to admit it was a bit unnerving to have B behind him like that…he was exposed and if the boy decided to attack, there was no one around to witness it. Not that he couldn't handle his own in a fight. His scuffles with Light showed that there was more to his scrawny frame than what people thought.

But Beyond never made a move to harm him. Quietly he trailed L down several floors to another room, one he'd never been in before. Was this…L's bedroom? Or rather, one of them? He could only assume as L left him as he went further into the suite. The man returned quickly though, a small box in his hands.

"Beyond, it pains me to do this, but it seems I have no other choice. Please forgive me," L said, though he didn't sound the least bit apologetic.

Without asking, he grabbed the teen's wrist and slapped a cuff on it. Beyond's eyes actually opened in surprise. But they widened even further as he saw the other cuff put on L's right wrist.

"There. You and I will remain like this until your departure. It's the only way I can fully ensure that I have an eye on you at all times."

Beyond was speechless. His face was calm but on the inside, a mini him was throwing a tantrum, ripping innocent brain particles and organs away from each other and kicking them around at this sudden turn of events.

Still looking calm on the outside, Beyond's inner self paused at the sight of a small angel appearing on one shoulder, a devil on the other.

"Hey, B!" The devil said. "Long time, no see man! I guess you've gotten a bit older and just think you're so grown now that you don't need us, huh?"

The angel gave him a reproachful look. "No, Beyond is growing up mentally. He's maturing, so leave him alone."

"Pfft, growing up my ass! Hey B, you didn't kill that Yagami kid today! Want me to do the job for you?" The devil said eagerly.

"How horrible!" The angel gasped. "Beyond, don't listen to him, he only wishes to lead you astray. Now, as for this current situation, I know that some part of you is thinking of harming the young man in front of you—"

"Harm? Hell, let's mutilate this bastard!" The devil said to B.

"But that would solve nothing," the angel finished in a hard tone at his counterpart. "Besides, assuming that L is the only one who knows where the key to the cuffs are at, you might have to walk around dragging a dead corpse…not very pleasant, I'm sure."

"No, we cut that fucker's arm off and slip the handcuff off!" The devil shouted, cackling how Beyond often did. "Then we smear his blood all over him. Did you see the way he freaked when you drew that B on him? He about shit himself!"

The angel narrowed his eyes. "Do you ever speak without using explicatives?"

The devil flipped upside down like a shinigami, still laughing. "I don't even know what the fuck that word means, but I'm gonna say no." Flipping back right-side up, he looked at the normal Beyond. "So man, what's it gonna be? We offing this guy or what?"

Beyond looked at the angel, desperately shaking his head no. He looked back at the devil, nodding vigorously yes. Then he stared forward. Closing his eyes, he snapped both fingers and in two puffs of smoke, both disappeared. Then he himself poofed, leaving only the original B without all his little friends in his head.

…O.O…

"Whatever, L," Beyond said, still remaining relaxed. "And just how long will we be remaining here?"

L thought about it. "I seriously hope not too long…until Roger comes to his senses and decides to readmit you four." Suddenly, L's cellphone rang, playing his B theme song (yeah, L's cool enough to have two theme songs!). He looked at the display screen. Watari.

"Uh hello, Ryuzaki speaking," L said in the receiver.

"Meet me downstairs," Watari said shortly, then hung up.

L stared at the phone a moment longer before slipping it in his pocket. Beyond didn't know who had called but knew it must've not been good to make L look like that.

The detective again put his hands in his pockets and now dragged B with him down to the main floor. As though awaiting his arrival, everyone was there as well. Matsuda had come back and was whispering to Aizawa, but as they looked at the handcuffs on the pair, they put their heads together and whispered more furiously. Heh…Aizawa secretly liked to gossip.

The children were sitting at the long computer table, chairs pulled together and heads bowed as they conversed about something. More than likely about advancing their "portal project".

Light and the other task members were also talking amongst themselves. Mogi was slightly waving a large sheaf of paper around. He looked something like a dancing gorilla but L kept the thought to himself. The man was more useful than Matsuda, he could say that.

Light also took a moment to snicker at the handcuffed pair. L threw him a glare as though to say "You can be next."

And then, there was Watari. His guardian, his caretaker, his one true friend. He knew what he wanted to talk to him about…

"Ryuzaki…what…what happened?" The man said. Though his eyes weren't very visible, L could see the frown on his face and the closely knitted eyebrows that spelled misunderstanding and betrayal.

"Well Watari, it seems that Light was supposed to be helping to teach Beyond how to drive. Something went awfully wrong in their lesson and…the car was wreaked," L finished lamely. It was the truth, the straight truth, but it still sounded…heartless and cold to his ears. But Watari wasn't one he could sugar-coat things with.

But suddenly, Watari's face looked even more puzzled. "No Ryuzaki, I saw that. And that's simply a modern-day replica of a 1930's limousine." He laughed a bit, "Do you honestly think that I'd leave the real one _here?! _It's all the way back in England! Japan's not ready for such a fine beauty as it."

"No, what I wanted to talk to you about was my sub sandwich! It's all Matsuda and Aizawa have been able to talk about and now I'd like to know where mine is."

What?!

L and Light's eyes trailed to Beyond. The boy grinned fully at the old man and said, "Hey, it was the day before my birthday! Consider it an early gift to me!" Then he threw back his head and laughed. Smirking over his shoulder, he turned to walk away…but was instantly jerked back after taking only five steps. Oh…he'd already forgotten about the chain. Damn, it made being diabolical difficult!

L smiled kindly at the elderly man. "I'll order you two to make up for it Watari. In the meantime, could you be ever so nice as to make me some tea? I haven't had a proper cup since you left."

And just like that, everything went back to normal. Wait…was it too soon to say that? L looked around the room. The taskforce had grouped up again, Light still speaking with his father. Mello was drawing something on a piece of paper, though considering that it still included Matt and Near, he knew he'd be taking it from him soon. Beyond was silently fuming at being tethered to him, and he himself…well, he was at peace.

Finally, the heavens had smiled upon him! Someone had been kind enough to bring his laptop down to the central floor and L gratefully sat at it, the first time in a seemingly long while feeling like he had things in control.

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Yes folks, I went through with that two percent idea and now have L and B chained together! Thank you everyone for your input! I don't think there was a person who was against it! L and B being chained are definitely going to be much more interesting than it having been Light. And I finally got Watari back in the picture! I actually have ideas for him in this story, he's not just the guy that supplies L with his sweets. I'd like to think of him as much more than that! Again, I apologize for the late update and also for not replying to reviews…my cell phone sucks when it comes down to !


	10. When the Walls Come Tumbling Down

Alright, admittedly, this is somewhat one of those chapters where I started off with a goal and my muse somewhat crashed it. But I'm ready to change scenes yet I don't want to just jump days. Speaking of which, I do have a slight idea of where I want this story to go, but I'm undecided on whether I want this to continue on day by day or if I'll be skipping through some. Anyways, I hope this didn't fall too flat. Enjoy!

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When the Walls Come Tumbling Down

L's seemingly good luck lasted all until that evening. Beyond demanded a birthday dinner. And everyone _had _to attend.

But of course everyone had tried to wheedle out of it…

"Oh, um…my mom's sick, I really need to visit her…" Matsuda had said to the boy.

"Your mother is a Kyoto prostitute who passed you off to the first relative willing to take you in so she could continue her line of work," Beyond told him impassively. "Your love for gossip and knowledge of pop culture comes from having been raised with five female cousins, two distant aunts and your grandmother. The fact that you still claim that you're straight is questionable but we'll leave that matter alone for the moment."

_How the hell does he know all of this?! _Matsuda mentally screamed.

L knew. If you knew where to go on the internet, it wasn't hard to get background information about people. Such is how even simple minded Misa had gotten all of Light's personal info…

Soichiro's excuse was, "Light and I haven't had any bonding time in awhile. I think I'll take him to a baseball game tonight."

To which Beyond replied, "There is no ball game tonight. Not that either of you even like sports. You would rather watch the newest episode of Law and Order like your wife on an American TV channel and besides tennis, your son doesn't play sports but rather stands around looking like a male model while everyone else does the actual work."

"Hey! I work too!" Light had shouted. "My smile is so dazzling, it temporarily distracts the opposing team members to where our team can win! I'm a vital part in my school's sports!"

Beyond only gave him a sardonic look.

Aizawa also tried to use a family excuse which Beyond quickly blew apart and Mogi said he had to feed his dog…Beyond laughed for a full five minutes before simply wiping the tears from his eyes and completely moving on to the next person.

The children agreed but again their heads came together as though forming some sort of plot…

As for Ide, he didn't even try to come up with an excuse but openly said, "I just don't like your ass."

Beyond shrugged, smirked, and then pulled L along to the dining room tucked off near the back of the building.

Watari had been kind enough to comply with B's request for a birthday dinner, even though the notice had come late. It was after ten p.m. before it was finished.

So, grudgingly, everyone sat down at the long glass table, daintily covered with a white table cloth and decorated with white candles floating in crystal bowls of water every few yards.

The food was lavish, the man had spared nothing in quality. And surprisingly, ever so slightly, the others found themselves enjoying the meal, even if the conversation was stinted.

Beyond unfortunately had to share the spotlight at the top of the table with L. The man refused to be pushed around as to sit wherever the teen pleased. He didn't really care where he sat, but the obstinance was just to assert some dominance.

Time ticked by and before anyone realized it, it was after midnight. Two things happened around this time.

The first thing was that whatever it was that the boys had been planning finally came to fruition. The remains of the large roasted chicken carcass exploded on the table. Bones and meat particles flew everywhere! In spooked fear, the task members withdrew their guns and started shooting all over!

Mello snagged Matt under the table, who had no choice but to drag Near as well since he was clutching his arm to death.

The blonde gleefully giggled at the chaos, snickering into his hand and turning his head to the side. In doing so, he noticed L and Beyond under there too, L sitting in his usual way minus a chair, and Beyond of course enjoying the pandemonium. He flashed Mello an evil grin that the boy actually returned.

Eventually, the sound of the ringing bullets stopped and the room fell silent. Aizawa looked over at Mogi and both gave sheepish chuckles for their behavior. Matsuda seemed horrified and Soichiro continued to hold his gun down by his side, but in a ready position to be fired again, searching the room with his eyes for any possible threats. And Ide appeared to want to keep shooting just for the hell of it.

Light had run out of the room.

The only person who hadn't moved a muscle was Watari, who had taken the liberty to sit at the other head of the table. Utilizing utmost manners, he continued to eat his way through a piece of the very chicken that had caused all the commotion. When he was finished, he dabbed the corner of his napkin across his lips, folded it beside his plate, and stood up.

And that's when midnight incident number two happened. Watari snapped.

"Everyone, out from under the table NOW!"

Several loud cracks were heard as all the Wammy boys hit their heads on the surface. Slowly, each climbed out, nursing their bruised scalps. Mello glanced at L who could only offer a small shrug. This wasn't a side of Watari he'd ever seen before, so even he was on full alert.

The elderly man glared at them. "Looking at you now, I cannot believe I ever considered you to be amongst the world's brightest people. All of you act like barbaric Neanderthals! I have _never _seen such displays of behavior as I've seen here! And L, it is your entire fault!"

L blinked and gaped at him, for once truly surprised. "What?! My fault? How?"

"These are your students and yet you cannot control them! The younger ones have gotten ahold of tools of mass destruction and have gotten to work on wreaking this building. And Beyond—" here he gave a chuckle—"Even you seem to be beyond controlling him."

Beyond and L met each others eyes. L was frowning while Beyond gave the shrug this time and started grinning.

"THIS ISN'T FUNNY, DAMINT!!" Watari shouted at him and the grin faded immediately. Then he whipped around to the others. "And you! You call yourselves men of law! I've seen girl scouts more organized and dedicated than you!"

"But sir, we're trying! Kira isn't—" Matsuda began but was cut of.

"THIS ISN'T ABOUT KIRA!! This is about YOU! All of you! But Matsuda, you're the most useless here."

"Aw, that's not fair," Matsuda pouted quietly.

"From here on out, I expect the taskforce to shape up to a proper investigation team or L and I will continue it on our own. He's solved thousands of cases without anyone's help and he can continue doing so."

"Now, as for you L," the man said, turning back to him. "I'm happy to see that you finally grew something below the waist and took charge of B. But that's not going to help with the younger ones. Starting tomorrow morning, all of you, (yes, you too, B and L) will begin doing chores and anything else I see fit to help develop you into responsible citizens. During the times that you are busy, I will guide the taskforce on assignments and such. Now leave me alone so I can finish my dinner. I worked too damn hard on it not to at least taste the pudding. "

The room was completely silent as they looked at him.

"I SAID LEAVE!!!" he shouted. Chairs scraped the floors and footsteps rumbled the walls as everyone scrambled to get out of the vicinity.

Each broke off in their separate ways, L and Beyond being the only two standing in the hallway.

"I'm not sleeping in your room," L said plaintively. "You and I will take up refuge in one of the spare rooms." With that, he pulled his pupil along. Once there, L headed to the armchair that his computer was already in front of. Beyond though, tried to continue on to the bedroom. He was instantly yanked back.

"What?" L asked innocently as he glared at him.

"Our sleeping arrangement," B said.

"Oh, I don't really sleep much. Feel free to do so yourself though."

Beyond's glare intensified. "Gee, I'd love to if I could _reach the bed._"

L sighed. "There is a couch."

"There's also a bed."

"The couch is right here."

"The bed is right there."

"The couch is closer."

"The bed's more comfortable."

L sighed again. "Beyond, I am surveillancing you wherever _I _happen to be and I happen to be in the living room at the moment so you are just going to have to deal with that."

Beyond growled and started stalking over to him. Without waiting to see what he was going to do, L stood up, mentally going over how he would kick the daylights out of the boy.

But Beyond didn't attack…necessarily.

Instead, he quickly stepped to L's side, swooped up the laptop under an arm and grabbed L around his waist. Before the older man could fully comprehend what had happened, he was deposited in another armchair in the room, laptop back in front of him and Beyond was curling up in the bed.

_Well then…that was…unexpected, _L thought. Beyond wasn't really stronger than him, but L only barely broke a hundred pounds. B was also slightly taller than him, which was how he was able to keep his feet from dragging the floor. No, Beyond's greatest weapon here was the element of surprise. L never in a million years had foreseen the boy just plucking him down in a desired location. This might prove to be bothersome…

Oh well, there was no sense in worrying about that at the moment. His mind was swirling with different thoughts, but the most prominent one was whatever Watari had in store for them. Watari boot camp?!

Great, just great. The word's greatest detective treated like some unwanted stepchild…it was times like this that made him happy that L was only a name and rarely a face.

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Ah, yes, don't I have an idea in store for the Wammy guys! Anyways, please review!


	11. Fighting Dreamers

Okay, I ask for everyone to get in their comical moods now, lol! Actually, I'm somewhat serious…I don't want this chapter to upset anyone. You'll see why when you get to reading it. Once you've found your happy place, do enjoy the chapter!

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**Fighting Dreamers**

(Name of a Naruto opening theme!)

That night, for the first time in a long while, L found himself dreaming.

He was down on the main floor, situated at the coffee table off to the side. The rest of the taskforce were there and were staring at him strangely. He entered the dream while in the middle of talking.

"Watari, could you get me another slice of cheese cake please?" L asked.

The old man stood to the side and gave him a reproachful glare. "Now Ryuzaki, I think it's about time you laid off the sweets. They're…they're not healthy for you."

At the moment that Watari said this, L was just about to take a huge bite out of a doughnut. "I understand your health concerns but I've had this diet—"

Everyone suddenly snorted loudly, and Light, Ide and Beyond laughed outright. L continued as though he hadn't heard them.

"I've had this diet for nearly all my life. No adverse effects have come of it thus far so I would like to continue on with this preferred meal plan."

The others fell into another fit of laughter and Mello was laughing so hard, he was rolling on the floor with tears streaming down his face. Perhaps it was his lack of social grace, but L didn't get what was so hilarious. Oh well, no matter. He still had another box of animal crackers left. Promptly he ripped it open and began munching.

Before he had finished them, Watari came up to him pushing a large food tray. Stacked on it was an array of all his favorite sweets. Without wasting a single moment, L grabbed whatever was closest to him and shoved it in his mouth. The others watched on as the filling from a jelly roll slid down his face and fingers.

Matt said the name of the food himself and immediately all three boys fell over cackling again. Even perfect Light twitched up a corner of his mouth.

"Um…Ryuzaki?" Matsuda said tentatively. "Uh, perhaps you should listen to what Watari was trying to say. I-I really think you should lay off the sweets."

L threw him his most annoyed glare, which somewhat fell flat due to his mouth being full. Spitting crumbs at him, he said, "You know, can I not get through one meal without hearing the criticisms of everyone? You say that as though I'm obese or something. Haven't I told everyone that you don't gain weight as long as you burn calories with your brain? I'm the world's top three greatest detectives; I'm using a great deal of mental power so I don't believe I'm in danger of such a thing."

Everyone's eyes went wide in disbelief as they looked around at each other. But of course it was Beyond who actually spoke.

"Man, I don't know whoever told you that fat ass lie but it's as big as you are! Dude…your jeans…you have plumbers-crack now! And yet you still insist on trying to sit like you used to! L, give it up man! The days of being a double zero are over!"

"What the hell are you talking about?!" L asked sharply.

"Here, take a look," the teen said, and held up a plate that L had licked clean to his face so that he could see his reflection.

In kinder terms than what Beyond had said, L had changed the difference of a bamboo stalk to a redwood tree. He still had shadows under his eyes, but they somewhat bulged…well, at times, they'd always done that, but now it was a constant thing. He wore his usual ensemble, upsized to fit him better though it was of little use. He could still see skin showing underneath the hem and the jeans looked fit to burst. As for his sitting position, Beyond was right. He couldn't pull it off any longer. He now needed the help of a footstool to bring his legs up but even that wasn't doing much. His shirt had stains all over it from his messy eating as well…

L screamed. Like when the idea of shinigami existing hit him, he fell over sideways. But this time, it was in very slow motion. Beyond, who was chained to him in this dream, was on the couch with him. As L began his slow descent, he screamed out, "TIMBER!!!!!" The boys who were sitting next to the sofa tried to scramble away, but Near was too slow. L landed on him and the boy was lost under the massive girth.

"NEAR!!!" Mello screamed theatrically. "You bastard! Give him back!"

"I would if I could, but I can't," L said plaintively.

Mello's eyes went as wide as saucers as he stared in horror.

The task force members got up to help L, but after a few minutes of pulling, they came to the conclusion that it was a fruitless effort.

"Okay, call in the forklift!" Aizawa yelled to no where in particular.

L gave him a truly hateful glare. "That won't be necessary. This is simply a matter of mind over body. I'll be fine."

With a bit of struggling (and a lot of pulling from the others), he managed to sit up. There, squished in his stomach was Near. That there alone said that this was a dream. The boy immediately peeled himself off of the man, falling to the ground while gasping and shaking.

"Oh, thank gods for clean air!!" he shouted. "One day I'm going to make it mandatory that everyone have an eco-friendly car!"

_Overboard much? _L thought to himself. But he found it was time to end this bizarre dream. He wasn't sure how to exit it since the most general way that it happened was by something very unpleasant happening. Then he saw it. The entrance door of the compound had an exit sign above it. Was that his ticket out?

Ever so slowly, he got up to stand on two very unsteady feet. Everything in his body screamed for him to sit his ass down, but he refused to listen to it. Keeping his eye on the prize, he shuffled forward to his goal. One foot, two feet, three…oh man, he couldn't do it! It was just too far! And now he was out of energy.

_Must…refuel…need…sustenance…_

L really hadn't gone more than three inches. Strangely enough though, he bent over quite easily to pluck a hunk of cake off of the food tray.

He was so busy blissfully eating it that he didn't notice the shared smirk between the others.

Light went to the cart and lifted up a large brownie with chocolate frosting all over it. Mentally he scoffed that for Watari wanting L to lose weight, he sure didn't make it easy on the man. But seemingly nicely, he held the sweet out for L to take.

L's eyes locked on to it like a missle. Or something like that… He took another shaky step to reach it, but Light took a step back. He still held the brownie out for the taking.

L shuffled again, not understanding why Light wouldn't just let him have the damn thing. And then the red glow of the exit sign in his peripheral vision caught his eye. Oh. Now he got it. How degrading! It made him want to say some choice words that he'd never had use for. You know what? This was a dream. Screw it.

"Fuck you, Light."

Light gasped, then fell over chocking. Wow. Had pretty-boy Yagami never been told-off before?

He continued to writhe on the floor while L proceeded quite easily now to the exit. Where had the fluid movements come from? Oh well, he was there now…such a pretty white light on the other side…

L awoke with a fast jerk, his head snapping up and his eyes opened wide in shock and slight fear. Was that one of those premonition type dreams? Was he really doomed to be picked up with forklifts if he continued to eat as he has?

On a plate in front of him was an unfinished slice of key lime pie…a very sweet desert if I myself can have any say in the matter. L stared at it with trepidation. To think, his beloved food could really be the death of him…perhaps even more dangerous than Kira!

L sat staring at the slice of pie for a long while. The sun had started to rise when he made his decision. Like a lion going in for the kill, L pounced on the treat ferociously. Oh, it was too good to be true! This is what heaven was! Forget all physical pleasures that you could think of, this is what orgasms were made of!

Beyond rolled over on the bed at the sound of L sucking his fingers very loudly from some whipped cream that had gotten on them. "Gee, for a second there, with you seated like that and with you making those sounds, I had to wonder what you were up to." He gave him his mischievous smirk. "Looking at you, I never would've guessed…but, as they say, looks can be deceiving."

L paused mid lick, then put his hands in his lap. "You're a pervert Beyond. Go back to sleep."

The boy chuckled loudly, but did roll back over.

Well, the detective had chosen his path. And whether it brakes or makes him will just be a mystery to everyone. With that said, his stomach grumbled at the thought of breakfast, or rather L's idea of breakfast. Yep, screw the conventional world!

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So, I had a random idea of just what would happen if all of L's sweets finally caught up to him…and in fact, if L were human, I'm pretty positive that our little Lawliet wouldn't be quite as he is today, xD! But I didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings with this chapter, it was all for laughs at L (for once!). Oh, and totally off the wall here, but what Beyond told L kinda makes me think of that deleted scene that was supposed to be an alternate way that Light and L met each other…if you've not seen it, you can YouTube it, but viewer discretion is advised! Heh…I now imagine it really being Beyond in that vid…

Well, there's nothing more to say here. Reviews are always welcomed! And remember, you too can take a potato chip…AND EAT IT!


	12. Conundrum

Happy Independent's Day, America!! Not that I did much today, lol! Nope, no grilling for us (darn!). Although, we had an awesome view of some spectacular fireworks right from our front porch. So, with pooch in tow (my dog, Caramel. And I had her more for the sake of trying to condition her to the sound of the fireworks, since she hates loud bangs of any kind), we watched them as they went off. And the finale was way too cool! Hey, who says adults can't be mesmerized by them? ^_^ Anywho, here's the next installment of Laments. Hope you enjoy!

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Conundrum**

It was true the L didn't sleep often, but as he'd noted before, since the children had arrived, he'd been doing so a bit more often. After he awoke from the dream, he had tried to begin his work at the computer again, but somehow his eyes drooped and thus he was out again.

The sun had already risen and he'd only had his eyes closed for a few minutes when his day unexpectedly began.

Watari stood at the end of the hallway L's room was on, carrying a large device. It was strapped to him, and he patiently adjusted it so that it was comfortable. Once he was sure he had it right, he raised something in his hands, twirling them in a flashy way. Ah, looked like he still had it. Without further ado, he struck the device attached to him. A large drum. He beat out a steady beat, the bass ringing loudly in the walled area.

The moment L heard it, it ripped him from his slumber and startled him enough to where he jumped out of his seat, landing on his stomach on the floor. In doing so, Beyond was also pulled with him. Their eyes met for a second and both mirrored each other's question: What in the frickin' hell?!!

"Come on, look alive boys!" Watari called out as he continued to pound down the hallways. "Up and at 'em! I want all of you down stairs in two minutes. Got that?"

L groaned, pulling himself to his feet. _Somebody please tell me I'm still dreaming, _he thought.

"I can't hear you!!" Watari screamed from a floor above. He was now in between their floor and the children's.

"Sir, yes sir!" Beyond yelled sarcastically.

"I didn't hear you, L!!" Watari shrieked.

Damnit! "Sir, yes sir!" L shouted in the same sarcastic tone as B.

"Alright then! Downstairs in…oops, looks like L cost you all thirty seconds. One minute and fifteen seconds left, ladies! Move it!" The drum sounded again, but faded as the man headed the opposite direction of the rooms.

L was already dressed, although since he was still in what he wore last night, he really wanted to take a bath and change. But there was no time. Dragging Beyond with him, he lamented over having to miss even the basic parts of hygiene.

Shortly after reaching the first floor, the boys stumbled down in line. Mello's blue eyes were narrowed furiously, nostrils flaring. Matt looked like a zombie, with deeper shadows around his eyes than before and his clothes fully wrinkled. He was awake, though he kept blinking blearily. But Near…the child was sleeping standing up, swaying slightly where he stood.

Watari entered seconds later, the task force behind him. Oh great…all of them looked very amused at this scene. The chance to see L being tortured was just too much for them to miss. Oh, and Beyond as well. The children had been a bit rowdy, but not towards them themselves. Front row seats for all.

"Alright, listen up!" Watari yelled. "I'm sick of the discord and chaos that has prevailed since your arrival," he said, eyes trailing the four boys. But to show that L was included in this, he flicked his eyes at him. "I believe what's in order is some good, hard work to build character. So, I have come up with various chores for each of you to do."

"Starting with you, Mello, Matt, and Near, you will begin fixing the holes you have created throughout the building and—"

"But it's nearly finished!!" Screamed Mello defiantly. "We even came up with a way to make people travel up floors faster!"

Just as he said this, Light yawned hugely, lifting his left hand high above his head. Of course he was wearing his precious Rolex watch, so heavy from the metal it took to create it. Suddenly, he felt his wrist being jerked upward. He looked up to see a very large magnet attached to the ceiling, next to one of the boy's 'portals'. Wait…how the hell?! The power of it was so strong that he started to lift off the ground by only the watch!

"Somewhere in a textbook of gravity, this has got to be impossible!" Light shouted. He was about to add more, but his body couldn't fight back anymore. The magnet ripped him from the ground, sucking him up to where it was placed, roughly twenty feet above their heads.

Now at this close range, not only was his watch sticking but his belt buckle too. And…his tie? Yes, Light Yagami was wearing a cheap, clip-on tie.

"Turn the fucking magnetism off!!" He yelled at the others. "I look like Spiderman up here!"

"Cool, Spiderman!" All the younger boys whispered excitedly.

Watari frowned at them, then walked over to a far wall. It was tiled, and at first glance, nothing seemed out of place. But on closer look, one would note that a panel close to the floor (placed so low so the children could reach it) looked chipped around the corners. Watari pressed it and an electronic touchpad became visible. He swiftly punched in a few numbers, then a final button which must've been the Enter key.

The quiet hum that had gone unnoticed until then stopped, and Light became detached from the ceiling. Only thing was, he was twenty feet up…quite the fall.

"Somebody catch me!!!" He shrieked, falling fast.

His father, Mogi, and Aizawa tried. But it was Matsuda who did the job.

…Only because he was directly under Light's path. His and Matsuda's eyes met for the briefest of seconds before he landed, and Light only had one thought: _Oh, I'm so screwed. _ He fell on the man hard, both having the breath knocked out of them.

They scrambled up, dusting themselves off. "So, um, uh…I kinda saved your life…" Matsuda began, but Light cut him off.

"You saved me from another concussion, something I could've dealt with. I don't owe you a thing."

"Aww," Matsuda whined. "I was just hoping we could finally be friends! I mean, you're so cool and stuff!"

"Yeah, I know," Light said arrogantly, turning his nose up at him.

The boys had begun twittering amongst themselves again. "How the hell did Watari know the pass code?!" Mello complained.

"Forget that, seriously, how was Light lifted up by only his watch?! And why only him?" Matt wondered.

"Because he's a douchebag," Near put in indifferently, twirling a strand of hair.

"And just who's the one to have even gotten the magnet up there?!" L cut in, truly amazed at this new feat.

"I want another sandwich," Beyond muttered, rubbing his stomach hungrily.

"That's enough!" Watari shouted, bringing back order. "As I was saying, you boys will fix those holes and remove the giant magnets…although I must say that even I'm intrigued by how you installed them without anyone else noticing…."

"L, you will be in the kitchen with me. And Beyond…" He turned his eyes coldly to the teenager. At the attention, B took up a slouch, putting a finger to his lips and grinning again. "You, Beyond Birthday, will clean up Matsuda's entire suite, namely the bathroom you defiled. I will allow L to release you during that time. "

Beyond's smile fell. "What?! He hasn't cleaned it up himself yet?! Ew!"

"I don't know if he has or hasn't, but that's not the point. For having ruined it in the first place, you will clean up the entire area." Watari turned back to the group at large. "Well, alright then. Get to it! Chop, chop!"

Each Wammy's boy grumbled off to their station. Matsuda followed Beyond to his suite to keep an eye on him, but smartly dragged Aizawa with him. Beyond probably now felt he had a vendetta with him and to be alone with the kid would not be wise.

Soichiro was actually in charge of looking after the three youngest as they fixed their portals. The entire time as they marched off, Mello muttered things like, "Damn old geezer… as an inventor himself, you'd think he'd appreciate such a creation! But noooo! Only invention he really has use of is L! Arrgh, I hate both of them!!"

As for L himself, he was first made to wash dishes. And unfortunately for him, he didn't understand a single step of the process. He was a detective; he solved cases, not cleaned houses. So it came as a bit of an embarrassment when he found himself staring at the bottle of dish detergent for five minutes straight as he wracked his brain to remember anytime he'd surveyed anyone who'd been washing dishes.

"L, what are you doing?" Watari asked him after having watched the man turn the bottle over and over several times in his hands.

"Oh, um, nothing in particular. It's just that…I hear the bell—"

"Ryuzaki, don't try that psycho-babble on me. You forget that I raised you, so I know all those mind tricks you like to play on others. I swear, at times, you're no better than Beyond. "

_Ouch! _L's inner self flinched.

"Now, tell me, what problem are you having with the detergent?" Watari commanded.

"Well…um…I suppose Dawn is a nice brand but um…uh…" His mind drew a blank as he fought to remember another type of detergent. "But, I suppose, uh…Gain would be better?"

Watari stared at him a moment longer, then actually face-palmed. "Ryuzaki. Gain is a laundry detergent."

"Oh."

"I see what the problem is. And all I have to say is…how in the world could you not know something as simple as making up dishwater?"

"Oh, I don't know, maybe because I have bigger things on my mind? Like fighting corruption, ridding the world of evil, bringing closure to families of unsolved mysteries, you know, stuff like that," L said sarcastically.

"Don't get fresh with me!" Watari snarled. What had gotten into him? He could never remember L being so cheeky.

"I'm sorry Watari. Forgive me." Like a puppy that had been properly chastised, L lowered his head submissively, and turned back to his sink of dirty dishes.

The English man sighed, and moved over to him. "Here, let me show you how it's properly done." He turned the knobs until hot water came out, and then added the detergent. He swished his hand around in it to make it soapier, then dropped in the dish washcloth. "Nothing to it," he said, stepping back.

"I see," L said, although on the inside he was seething at not knowing something as easy as this. Once again, it was a good thing L was only a name and voice, not an actual person to the general public.

The old man had left him with all the dishes from the night before. As he slowly scrubbed at them, Watari sat down at a small table and had a cup of tea.

After an indefinite amount of time had passed, Beyond slouched into the room, but not because he was trying to appear devious. This time, he was thoroughly tired. "You know, I'm as much of a neat freak as they come, but I have found a new appreciation for maids. I've never seen so much chaos in one room! Oh my god, Matsuda's bedroom! Who the hell puts their porn magazines next to their books of the World Encyclopedia?!"

Light happened to be standing in the doorway, and began whistling in a very nonchalant way, looking everywhere but at him.

Soon after Beyond had come in, the boys all but dragged themselves through the door too. Well, except Mello. The other two were worn out, but he was a constant spitfire. "All that hard work, to waste! I can't believe it! This is an out rage! I demand anarchy! I want the world to know that Mihael Kheel is not one to be trifled with!!"

Suddenly, Matt and Near fell into fits of laughter. "Pfft, hahaha! That's your real name?!" Matt spluttered. "Mihael?! Mello, you're European?! And to think, you can't stand Euro-dance music!!"

"Shut up! Your real name's Mail! What kind of name is that? You're named after postage!"

Matt immediately sobered up. He shrugged. "So?"

Near finally got the last laugh. "Heh, I have a cool name. Nate River."

"Yeah, but you still look like a human sheep!" Mello screeched, falling over in a fit of laughter.

"I'll have you know that women adore me," Near sniffed, then turned on a heel and walked over to the table.

The only one that hadn't finished his task was L. By now, his hands were raw, his hair was limp and he stared with single-minded determination at the same plate he'd been scrubbing for the past two minutes.

Light saw him struggling, and actually came over to help. "Ryuzaki, that water's cold…and dirty. Perhaps you should change it," he said, and reached over to pull the plug out of the drain.

L snatched up a knife and stabbed near his hand. His eyes were bloodshot and he looked as crazed as B. "No, you're going to leave this water alone! You hear me?!"

"Alright! Damn! Just know that I'm not eating off of any of your dishes!" Light said, backing off.

"You sure, Watari-san, that he's going to be okay?" Matt asked the man, whispering to him behind a hand.

"Yes, Ryuzaki can take abnormal amounts of stress. Trust me, this is nothing to him. He's simply being fussy like a child because he doesn't want to do it."

And so, it was with that that everyone waited for another half hour until L was finished. When at last the last pot was put in the dish rack to dry, Watari got up and spoke to them.

"Well now, wasn't that fun? You see how cleaning builds character?"

"Only character it built for me is a pissed-off one," Mello muttered.

"But oh, there's so much more to be done!" Watari continued. "We haven't even gotten to the fun part! The outside of the windows!"

In response to his enthusiasm, all five of the 'Wammy boys' collapsed in exasperation on the table.

This was evil. Pure and simple evil.

* * *

Yes, this was another one of those chapters with L being completely OOC, I hope you guys didn't mind too terribly much. Also, I want to give a huge thanks to Lollypop09 for your idea, toldja it was brilliant! ^_^ Oh, and here's a random DN fun fact. There are four Hideki's related to the show. The first one is Hideki Ryuga, the pop star. The second is when L takes on that name to attend Light's school. The third is one of the composers to L's B theme song (that one is really strange!). And the fourth…is Ide's first name! Yep, he's also a Hideki. Anywho just felt like sharing that with you guys. Okay, please review!


	13. Chain Gang

Wow, this is a very long chapter, but for a very good reason. I'm about to send my precious laptop back to the manufacturers to see if they can do anything for it after I stupidly spilled a bowl of Raisin Bran cereal on it, lol! Granted, if push comes to shove, they'll just send me a brand new one, since I paid nearly a hundred bucks to upgrade my warranty on it. Anywho, I'm not sure when I'll be getting it back so I wanted to post this to hold you off. With that said, do forgive any late responses to reviews.

Okay, on to other business. Several people have asked about the fact that the children revealed their names in the last chapter right in front of Light. My response was that it didn't really matter because Kira plays no part in this story. Yep, ya heard me! For comedy's sake, I might have Light being Kira for tiny little snatches, but that's about it…the case itself is a background thing. We know it's going on, but it's not going to be brought into focus. Also with that, there is not going to be much, if any of Ryuk, Rem, or any other shinigami. I'll admit, Ryuk was interesting in the show, true. But I'm not crazy about him in any fanfics. Well no…I actually do have a tad bit of dialogue from them planned…but I don't think it's going to expand into them becoming staples in this.

Alrighty then! Enough of that. Here's the new chapter. Do enjoy!

**

* * *

Chain Gang**

Watari wasn't lying when he said he had more for them to do. L thought he had it bad with the dishes…pfft, his next task would make that seem like child's play.

He also wasn't lying about cleaning the windows. Where the hell did he get a scaffold from?! Granted, where the hell did he get a helicopter from as well? None of these questions crossed L's mind as he knelt on the hovering structure. All he knew was that he wanted _down now. _

Oh yeah, did I mention that Beyond had been chained to him again?

"Nice view up here, eh?" The boy said to him, grinning as he sprayed the window. He glanced over to L. The man hadn't moved since the scaffold had been lifted in the air. He had immediately fallen to his knees and held on for dear life to a side rail. The problem with this was (besides the fact that his trembling also shook the precarious balance they already had) that the platform was not solidly walled in. Meaning everytime he opened his eyes, what he saw was a clear view of industrial Japan—from twenty six stories up.

Yes, of course L had been higher. He'd flown the afore mentioned helicopter for crying out loud! But he was the one in control then. This little two by five board with rails was a joke compared to that. It didn't help any that the winds decided that strong breezes would be suitable for the current moment and that Beyond kept grinning at him.

"Aw, come on! Lighten up, L! This isn't so bad, right?" But of course he wasn't really concerned about L. It was a taunt.

"Beyond, not now," L gritted between his teeth and closed eyes. Oh gods, the wind picked up for a moment! His arms wrapped around his purchase even tighter.

"You know, this would all be over quicker if you helped," B said, frowning at him. "I mean, personally speaking, I don't mind it. But you look like you're going to upchuck and who's not trying to have to see or hear that is me."

So it was only for personal gain did Beyond offer seemingly helpful advice, eh? Well, it had the desired effect. L slowly looked up at him, his face wary, prepared for the other shoe to drop in B's supposed nice-guy mood at the moment.

Ever so carefully, he stood up, still latching on to the sides as he did. Yes, he could do this!

"You're right. How silly of me," he said, trying to be his normal, emotionless self. "I can take Kira head-on, but I become terrified when situated twenty-six stories above the world? And when everyone looks like ants below me…and I'm also stuck on a scaffold with a demented teenager…" he added that last part very quietly. The tiny progress he had made completely disappeared and he sank back to his knees, hugging the rail for dear life again.

Beyond could only sigh. "Damn, I wish I had a video camera about now. Or at least my cell phone…which Watari made me leave behind due to our abrupt awakening. I'd have you wrapped around my little finger with all the extortion I could do with a video of you like this! Hell, of any video of you!"

Yes, L was ashamed of himself for his behavior, but sometimes fears surpassed rationality. So it was with this thought that he continued to hang on for dear life while Beyond did all the cleaning…swaying to a tune he was whistling while at it.

Heartless bastard.

~.~.~.~.~

"Man, this SUCKS!" Mello screamed. He'd been screeching and squawking about their current chore for the past fifteen minutes. "No one other than a child labor worshiper would make kids mow the lawn with their bare hands!"

"We're not mowing the lawn, we're just tidying Watari's garden," Matt sighed. They'd been over this several times already and now he was starting to tire of repeating himself.

"Who the hell grows a garden in a city?! I mean, there's one tiny patch of grass out here, surrounded by all this concrete, and what does he put there, of all things? Oh, he couldn't just leave it alone, _oh no, _he _had _to put a frickin' garden there!" Mello kicked a rock, which hit Near. The boy whimpered, but bit his lip to hold back the tears.

"It's not that bad," Near reasoned, wiping the tears that would've otherwise fallen with the back of a dirty hand. His face was now covered in dark streaks. "At least the sun is shining."

"Oh, yeah, sure, that really makes it better!" Mello huffed. "I'd rather the rain! Welcome it with arms wide open like that Creed song! Because I don't know if you've noticed it, but it's sweltering out there!"

Now that the moment of crying had passed, Near leveled him with narrowed eyes. "Gee, it couldn't be the fact that you're wearing black, could it?"

"Hey! Black is sexy!"

Everyone stopped and looked at him.

Mello stood his ground, standing straight and showing no remorse for his words.

"What's sexy mean?" Matt asked.

What?! How could he not know?! Then again, they were children and unless they somehow sneaked a look at literature meant for someone older, or websites of the same nature, they hadn't been subjected to anything more than children's shows. Even Wammy's House took care to keep the young mind innocent.

But in Matt's case, he probably didn't know what the word meant mainly because he never looked up too many words in the dictionary. He was a brilliant one of course, but his downfall was his lack of drive.

"Um, don't worry about it," Mello muttered, going back to picking any rocks and such from the garden. Suddenly, his fist enclosed around a plant and he uprooted it from the ground.

"What the hell is this?! Oh my god! Is this marijuana?!!"

All eyes whipped to him again. But Near was their voice of reason.

"That's parsley. It's used as a seasoning for foods. In fact, the two don't even look alike."

"That's what you say!" Mello yelled. "But think about it. How is it that Watari is generally so calm all the time? And now out of nowhere, he suddenly snaps? This stuff looks kinda young so maybe it's not ready to be harvested yet. So now that he's run out of his supply, he has nothing to chill him back down and is taking it out on us!"

"Not a bad theory…" Matt said, tapping a finger to his face.

"Seriously Mello, you just think that everyone and everything is out to get you!" Near bit back at him. "The whole world isn't in a conspiracy theory to get you!"

"That's what you say—"

"Yes, that's what I say!" Near cut him off. "And I say that because it's true! Listen to yourself! Are you sure _you're_ not on something?! You sound as paranoid as though you are!"

"Near…I'm amazed by you. You think _I _would mess up my body, which is a temple given to me by the heavens, with such degrading things as drugs?" Mello's voice seemed like he was hurt, but the boy was as good at acting at times as Light could be. Well, Mello was way more theatric.

"I don't know and I don't care," Near said, shrugging a shoulder while going back to his weeding. "But at the age of five, I seriously hope not."

Mello huffed, then stomped off to a remote corner of the garden…which, due to the size, was really only a foot or two away from him. Matt stared a moment longer at the ripped up parsley. _And to think, I've always thought smoking was cool! I promise never to smoke _anything, _not _ever!

Yes Matt…we know.

~.~.~.~.~

After another indefinite amount had passed, the boys met up with L and Beyond back inside the compound. Strangely, it was Beyond who was sitting in an armchair this time, while L sat completely on the floor, feet not hunched up. In fact, sitting is a nicer term. He was slumped against the side of the chair and gripping the side of it as though letting go would be the death of him.

Watari stood ready to speak when the boys entered. "Ah, I see you all have finished! But L…I was watching you two. You didn't do anything to help Beyond. I'm not training you up to be a slacker!"

"Watari, please…do you not remember that I'm currently also trying to solve six other cases besides this one? I would hardly call that slacking."

"I took care of those for you," Watari told him.

L's head shot up "What?! How?!"

"Simple. Dropped them."

"D-dropped them?!" L stammered.

Those cases were his life! He didn't do detective work for a paycheck (although the cash flow was nice!). This had always been his dream! And to not have only gotten his dream of being a detective, but having it multiplied a million fold by being the world's best detective! L had started his work when he was only eight…that was like receiving a lifetime's worth of Christmas's, birthday's, Halloween's (wait, that is his birthday…), and any other cool holiday all in one! If Watari continued to drop requests for their assistance, L wouldn't be L anymore…he'd just be… Lawliet…and probably a mediocre investigator somewhere, doing things like, Matsuda's job or something.

"Hey!" Matsuda suddenly yelled, pulling L out of his reverie. Oh. Looked like he'd said that very last bit out loud. Whoops. Well, he sure as hell wasn't taking it back!

"So, with your schedule cleared for the time being, I'm sure you wouldn't mind doing a few more things for me, right?" Watari asked his oldest pupil.

"Well, you see, I was going to—"

"Good! Cause I need you to mop the kitchen floor," Watari cut L off. The feeble hand the man had raised to protest dropped to his side, as did his head.

"Yes, Watari," he mumbled.

"I want it spic and span, L. I want to be able to eat off that floor!"

"Eww!" Near and Matt whispered to each other, but Mello said, "That's just frickin' nasty!"

The three boys at that moment were about to slink away when the roof above them rained down some particles from the ceiling. Then a second later, a loud ripping sound was heard and Soichiro fell through a hole.

"DAD!" Light yelled. He made to run over to where he would land to perhaps aid in his fall, but had caught a glimpse of his reflection on his computer screen. Now how did this strand of hair get over there? Well maybe if he just swept it this way…

No thanks to his son, Soichiro landed on a couch that just happened to be placed under the hole.

"Oh yeah, the portals are still a success!" Mello shouted gleefully.

"No, they're still terminated," Watari told him sternly. "Now you three will have to go and repair that one. And to ensure that you three don't cheat or anything, I'll be the one watching you do it this time. You might've been able to slip some things by Mr. Yagami, but I know you better. It won't be so easy with me." He marched them up the stairs, while L unfortunately dragged Beyond with him to the kitchen.

By reading the label on the back of the bottle, L figured out how to make the mop water. Watari had smartly left the utensils out for him already. So, he dipped the mop in, pulled a lever to squeeze the excess out, and was about to begin when he felt a jerk on his wrist.

Beyond was across the room, straining to reach an upper cabinet. "Arrgh…Watari said…there was…jam…in…here…!" He grunted.

L wasn't in the mood for it. Very coldly, he jerked the chain back roughly. The sudden pull forced Beyond off his feet and he stumbled backwards and fell.

"What the hell is wrong with you?!" He asked sharply. But L wasn't paying him any attention…if only he could get this damn floor clean! But a certain someone was in his way!

L dropped the mop and went over to him. Without saying a word, he reached in his pocket and pulled out something. A very tiny key. Deftly, he unlocked the cuff from around his own wrist*.

Beyond immediately made a break for the door.

"Get back here!" L snarled, yanking the chain back. They were now caught in a tug-of-war. But L's end was close enough to where he needed it. Quickly, he wrapped it around the fridge door, securing the cuff back to the chain. Unfortunately, this only created a loop, leaving B to still have quite a bit of moving space, but it was better than before.

He continued his cleaning, doing his best to get where Beyond stood, looking in the fridge for endless minutes for a food that wasn't there. Finally, in a moment of fury, the teen slammed the door shut.

"Who the hell doesn't buy jam?! Even if it was in that cabinet, it'd be warm! Yuck!" He gave a huff, then hopped up on a counter that was beside the fridge. He kicked out a drawer below it and rested his feet there, now silently fuming. Well, at least L could now mop in that spot.

Twenty minutes of applying elbow grease to the floor and it at last looked spotless. Coincidentally, Watari reappeared with the bedraggled children. And this time, Mello finally looked like the fight had gone out of him.

The old man examined the work L had done. "Hm…not bad, not bad…" He reached in his pocket and took out something small and red. A strawberry. Wait, who the heck kept strawberries in their pockets?!

Watari held it out for a moment, but not as though wanting someone to take it…although L did lick his lips as he focused intently on the fruit. With a flick of his fingers, the man dropped it on the floor.

For L, it was like watching it in slow motion, but helpless to stop it. The strawberry fell almost dramatically, then bounced once, bounced twice, and rolled a bit before coming to a halt.

_Noooooooooo!!! _He mentally yelled, but physically he did find himself dropping to his knees in horror. How could Watari do this?! A strawberry?! This was inhumane!

But it got weirder. Watari knelt down, took the strawberry…AND ATE IT!

Okay, minus the dramatics, Watari really did eat the strawberry that had been dropped on the floor. He chewed it over on one side, switched it to another, rolled it around a bit, and then…stopped.

"Hm…interesting," he said. "L, what scent did you use on the floor again?"

"Apple orchard, I believe," L told him.

"I see. Well I must say, quite an interesting blend…I suddenly have a craving for a fruit salad now!" He was about to walk toward the fridge until he saw Beyond sitting next to it. "But um…I can wait," he said. "Anyhow, I believe you all have done some fine work today. A break is in order. Fifteen minutes! Get to it!"

Great. Back to drill sergeant Watari. The boys all slumped to the floor with L, too tired to do much else.

But…oh no…Beyond was grinning again…

* * *

Okay, again, forgive the long chapter…I know, a lot to ingest at one time, xD! Also, there was an asterisk placed above. I did that, referring to L unlocking himself from Beyond. Why didn't he do that on the scaffold, some might ask? Because he was too wrapped in his own fears to think logically to do that! ^_^ Also, I wanted to let you know that L unlocking himself from Beyond is not going to become a routine thing. The point is to always keep an eye on him, not chain him to other things!

Well peeps, I've got a lot of saving on my USB drive to get to (unless I remove the hard drive to preserve my computer's memory, which I'm not sure of how to do…and it sounds kinda risky anyways!)…review, as always, but as I did say as well, forgive any late responses to them! Check you guys later! ^_^


	14. Mission Impossible

Greetings! I come bearing another chapter! Not that I have my laptop back yet…it'll be roughly another week. Trust me, I'm depressed about it. I've named myself on my MSN 'A.D. Williams: Laments of a Laptop', xD! But like how mother used to use mine all the time, the moment has come for the roles to reverse! Now I hog her desktop! Mwahahaha! But man…don't I miss being able to travel the house with wireless…and her desk chair is killing my ass! ^_^

Er, excuse my French. Anywho, read the new chapter. Hope you like it! I'm finally getting on with more of the story plot!

**

* * *

**

Mission Impossible

In Beyond's eyes, L had made a huge mistake when he had uncuffed himself from him. Now only held back by the fridge door, there wasn't much in the way of escaping.

His other hand was free and he reached in his pocket, producing a knife. It wasn't a pocket knife in the way of being small and convenient for random situations as it was more of just a knife in his pocket…the sharp, serrated edges pointed to it being more of a utensil for hunting then say, cutting open a box or something.

L had also made the mistake of only chaining his left hand. Beyond could use both if necessary, but preferred the right one. With deft quickness, he got to work trying to saw the chain off.

The other Wammy boys were still an exhausted mess on the floor, moaning and groaning to each other.

"Uuuhh…I think I'm growing blisters on my feet," Matt muttered.

"My blisters have blisters," Near whimpered.

"Man, I just frickin' hate this!" Mello screamed.

L gave a huge sigh. "I agree with all of you. And if I ever ride anything that goes high at a carnival it will be too soon!"

Suddenly, Watari came back into the room. "Change of plans. It's such a beautiful day outside that I figured all of you would like some fresh air. L, you are to take them to the park on Shinjuku Avenue. Yes, Beyond, you are to go--"

He cut himself off as he noted the jerky hand movements the boy was doing with his back turned. One hand was wrapped around the chain to keep it quiet while the other one was doing the moving.

No…Beyond couldn't be _that _sick, could he?! Not touching the 'meat weasel' in front of the kids!!

"BEYOND BIRTHDAY!!" Watari yelled, stomping over to him. Beyond quickly flipped the knife shut and shoved it back in his pocket. But to Watari, it probably looked like he was doing something else.

"This…this is an atrocity!" Watari said, struggling to control his voice.

"Yeah, I guess it is," Beyond shrugged, completely nonchalant.

"How could you do such a thing?! In front of the children?!"

"Well, you see, all you have to do is--" Beyond began.

"NO! Never mind, I don't want to know!"

The thing was, Beyond thought Watari knew what he was really doing. And Watari figured Beyond knew what he was talking about. Watari took a step forward to shake some sense into the boy and instead stepped in the metal shavings. Ah…now everything made sense.

The man looked at the cut chain, looked up at Beyond's grinning face, then whipped around to L. Bad move. Beyond used what length the chain afforded him to wrap it around Watari's neck, choking him.

"Alright, do as I say or the old fuck gets it!" Beyond cackled, his eyes wide and mad with his cruel humor. "I demand jam! Lots and lots of jam! Smucker's preferably."

Watari looked as cool and indifferent as always. Without changing his expression, he elbowed the boy in the stomach. With him doubled over, he brought his knee up to his groin.

"Low blows! So…lame!" he gasped out, then crumpled on the floor.

Watari regarded him with his impassive eyes for a moment before turning back to the others. "As I was saying, all of you will be going to the park. Yes, Beyond will be going with you."

Everyone groaned and muttered their disapproval. Watari acted like he hadn't heard it.

"Also, Light Yagami will be going with you."

"Say what?!" Light shouted, sliding into the room so fast that he crashed into a wall. "Light Yagami is doing _what_?"

"Going with the others to the park," Watari repeated, still so careless.

"Says who?!" Light said incredulously.

"Says me."

"Well that's just bullshit!"

Watari quirked an eyebrow at him. "Not if it's true."

"Pfft, to hell I'm going!" He crossed his arms over his chest.

"Yes, you will be going there, considering we all know you're Kira," Watari mumbled very quietly, examining his nails as he did so. "And besides, I have a deal that I'm sure you'll find very beneficial to you."

Light unfolded his arms, his head perking up warily. "Uh-huh. And that is…?"

"Go to the park and I'll get Beyond a proper driving instructor."

Light's face looked like Christmas had come early. Beyond's also held glee.

"Light, remember _our _deal though? You were to teach me my lessons and in return, I would leave you alone. If someone else teaches me, then that cancels out our pact and I'm not to fully blame for whatever misfortune falls upon you." He gave him a sideways grin, knowing he had the boy cornered.

Light wasn't going to be blackmailed so easily. "I'll take those chances," he said. B was now chained to L. It wasn't much reassurance, but it sure was better than nothing.

Beyond huffed and fumed, saying something like, "It's hard to find good victims these days…"

And so L took it upon himself to pack lunch for them (after reattaching himself to Beyond). Well, tried to anyways. What he considered lunch was cinnamon rolls and a canister of overly sweetened tea. Mello thought lunch was a continental buffet. Matt was a bit of a health nut (?!) and wanted everything to be organic…he wasn't a vegetarian but was one step from it. Better than being vegan…_no meat at all?! _*shudders*

Near didn't give a care for what was packed and neither did Beyond, so long as there was jam. Light…perfect Light Yagami just wanted a bag of chips…

But with all these different tastes and such, L gave up on the lunch idea and just decided that again, they would do take-out on the way back from the park. Well…then there was nothing to pack.

Wait…Light had to run and get sunscreen, an iPod, and a thick novel to make him _look _intelligent. Right…like his name wasn't already in all the newspapers for his accomplishments. Near had to have a toy, Matt had to have a video game, L had to have at least one canister of tea and Beyond again reiterated his need for jam. L was _this close _to taping his mouth shut.

So, this ragtag band of people set out in the blazing sun to 'enjoy' this Shinjuku park. Oh, the foreshadowing…

* * *

Well there you have it…the Wammy's kids (and Light) are going to the park. I already have the next chapter planned out in my head so hopefully it won't take me too long to actually write it down. And…wow, huge coincidence here again. Lollypop09, I thank you yet again for your terminology…you know what phrase I'm talking about, xD!

To everyone else, thank you for all your reviews…and I write that now, here in the middle of this story because I was recently checking out some guy's profiles that had _very _long stories, with over 1000 reviews to each! And for a moment, I actually felt jealous! But then I thought about it…yes, they too have lives as do I…but, it's just fan fiction! I'll let the jealousy roil once they start writing real books! ^_^ Anywho, comments and such are always welcome. Gracias!


	15. Chaos Theory

I'm not sure how many of you guys I told that I had the ideas to this chapter in my head, but my laziness prevented me from writing it, lol! Well, here it is but my mood when writing it (over a period of several days) has been kinda...I don't know what to call it! I hope it doesn't fall flat, for actually, my main ideas come in the next chapter. Most of the stuff here just randomly hit me. Do enjoy!

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Chaos Theory**

Shinjuku Park was only a few blocks from the compound. The younger ones walked ahead of L as he slowly sauntered along behind them. Well, Near had decided to stay at his side, holding his free hand while twirling his hair with the other.

Light made sure to walk on the complete other side of Beyond…especially after what happened shortly after they had set out…

Light had been the one walking along the very edge of the sidewalk, Beyond next to him. In his anger of having to go on the trip in general, he'd forgotten just how much he hated this boy. No worries; Beyond made sure to remind him. Just as a car was approaching from the same direction in the lane closest to them, B pushed him into the road.

"You mother fu—" Light began, but just then he realized the car as well. Instinctively he curled up and instead screamed something that sounded like "The beautiful always die young!"

But whaddaya know. The car screeched to a halt just a mere few inches from hitting him. Light still crouched, waiting for the blow to come. After a few moments of noticing that he was actually still alive, he slowly looked up at the bright red vehicle directly in front of him.

The driver blasted the horn straight in his face.

"AHHH!!!" Light screamed, scrambling up, but holding his ears. "What the hell you do that for?!!" The driver blew at him again.

"Get the fuck out of the way, dipshit!" The man yelled at him. Classic road rage driver…and of course he was in a pretty sports car.

Light stumbled back onto the sidewalk and watched as the man left a cloud of dust in his wake as he zoomed off.

"Well wasn't that…unpleasant," L said quietly, continuing the walk down the street. But he had shifted himself to where Beyond was now the one walking the curb, him in the center and pushing Near to walk in front of him, and Light gratefully took up a place on the farthest side.

"Beyond, you truly are a bastard," Light said to the boy.

Beyond gave him his trademark grin and said something…but Light couldn't hear it.

"You know, I'm not a lip reader. Any other time you're quick to speak your mind. Just say it," the brunette told him, massaging his sore ear drums.

Beyond began talking again, but it looked like someone had hit the mute button on him.

"What?" Light said, cupping an ear. Beyond repeated his words a third time.

"What?!" Light yelled a little louder. Beyond frowned at him, but this time didn't say anything. Instead, L was kind enough to try to pass along the message.

"WHAT?!!" Light screamed, all but putting his ear to L's mouth to hear him.

"STOP YELLING AT ME!!" L snapped back. But of course, Light didn't hear that either.

"You do realize you're arguing with a deaf person, right?" Beyond said, smiling. "And just why is it that deaf people insist on yelling? They're the deaf one, not you!"

L threw him a glance. "Your fault. Unless you foresaw him dying today, and regardless of if you did, your actions were a bit…uncalled for," he muttered to him quietly so no one else would hear.

"Hello! Is anybody listening to me?!" Light continued to shout, though he had that weird enunciation that the hearing impaired often have.

"Heh, Light's retarded!" Mello cackled. Turning around from where he was walking in front of him, he said, "Your mother is like a doorknob, everyone gets a turn!"

Light frowned at him for a moment, then reached out and popped his mouth. "I actually understood that, damnit."

Mello stared at him with wide, blue eyes before whipping back to the front and stomping away several feet ahead, periodically throwing nasty glances at Light.

They soon reached the park. Afternoon joggers ran on the path that wound through the area and a few mothers watched their young children as they played on the jungle gyms, conversing with each other about…well, motherly things.

"Okay, have at it," L said to the three younger ones. Mello and Matt dashed off, but Near stayed beside him, taking his hand again in his.

"So do I get to go?" Beyond asked.

"No Beyond because you've shown that you don't know how to behave when left alone," L told him. He pulled the other boy off to a bench in the shade and sat down. Near settled on the ground to play with his toys. Beyond huffed and threw himself down in a spot beside L. Light did so as well, but again made sure to be as far away from B as possible.

Out on the playground, Mello had run into a very strange child. This young boy was holding a stuffed rabbit and staring intently at a yellow flower as though trying to control it with his mind perhaps.

"Hey dude, you okay man?" He asked cautiously. Ordinarily he would've just ignored him and went about his business. But the boy looked so…enamored as he gazed at the flower, as though really waiting for something to happen to it.

But his words snapped the boy out of his reverie. "Oh, hiya! My name is Mitsukuni Haninozuka, but everyone calls me Honey! And this is Usa-chan!" He held up the stuffed rabbit, to show who the other…er, object was.

"Um…right…" _Great, he's a stuffed animal lover. This is worse than Near and that stupid blanket of his. _

The other boy's bright grin unexpectedly grew to a dark smile. "Guess what I'm doing?"

_Oh, even more lovely. I've run into another Beyond Birthday wannabe. Please tell me he doesn't have a secret fanclub! _"What?" Mello asked mildly. Subtly, he half turned his body so as to run if need be.

"I'm waiting for this flower to die," the boy named Honey said, his evil grin getting bigger.

"Pfft, you're going to be waiting a long time!" Mello laughed. "It's still spring, it's not that old."

The boy tsked and shook his head. "All things can be controlled…if you just know how to do it. Watch this." He leaned over to a dandelion and blew the white petals. They flew off in the breeze, never to be seen again.

A moment of silence, then: "I don't get it," Mello said, narrowing his eyes in annoyance, mainly for himself for still standing there and listening to this crazy kid.

"Wait for it," the boy said, still wearing that wicked smile.

Suddenly, a nearby sapling fell over from seemingly nothing.

The boy then turned back to him. "Did you see that? Now what do you think caused that tree to fall over?"

"Hell if I know and I really don't care," Mello muttered, starting to walk away. But the other boy grabbed his arm, keeping him still.

"Haven't you ever heard of the Butterfly Effect? That what's done in one place and time can drastically alter or affect another place? I destroyed that dandelion. In return, a tree fell. The bigger the destruction, the bigger the ripple effect. Well…not always."

That was it. This kid was officially dubbed by Mello as 'Most unstable child of the year'. "You don't really believe that I'm going to fall for that bull, do you? Please tell me you're smarter than that."

Honey sniffed disdainfully. "Fine. But even Usa-chan knows the secret behind it. This idea isn't known world-wide for nothing."

Damn, this kid knew how to pull his mental strings! Could he really control the world with just a few simple movements?! It was too good to be true!

Honey continued talking. "I am a master of the Butterfly Effect. But I'd rather call it…the Chaos Theory."

Mello could've sworn that the sky darkened when he said that and had the weather been a bit worse, lightning would've flashed as well. But this was beside the point. Standing before this boy that was only a year or two older than him, be gave him a humble bow.

"Please, take me on as your pupil!"

Honey's smile grew its widest yet.

~.~.~.~.~

Matt had found that the swing set was clear and thus a perfect spot to play his PSP2 in peace (xD!).

That is, until a girl with bright pink hair sat down near him. The first thing that came to his mind was Sakura from Naruto, but…that's just silly. Well, it didn't matter. He carefully kept his eyes on his game so as to not engage her in any conversation.

"I'm Stephanie!" she suddenly spouted, holding an enthusiastic hand out to him.

Well, so much for that idea. Matt threw an annoyed side glance at her. Maybe if he still said nothing, she'd go away…

"You know, playing video games all the time isn't good for you," She told him, putting her hand in her lap and foregoing the handshake.

Last thing Matt needed was a lecture. _Please, please just leave me alone…_

And for a time, she did. What caught his attention though was not her necessarily speaking to him…but humming. She had a very high-pitched hum (as was her voice) and it could grate on one's nerves after awhile.

Oh, but it got worse. She began to sing. It was nothing Matt knew and he honestly didn't have an interest in knowing.

"Yar-har fiddle di-dee. Being a pirate is alright with me. Do what you want cause a pirate is free. You are a pirate!"

No. Hell no! Was this a kid's sing-along song?! Forget it, this girl had won the swing set!

Matt got up and tried to hurry away, but she chased after him. "Wait! I never got your name!"

He ran as fast as he could, but this girl must've been a track star since she hawked him down in less than three seconds. Was she even human?!

"Your name?" She said expectantly.

"Matt…" he said grudgingly, trying to still walk away.

"Hello Matt. I couldn't help but notice that you seem very interested in your…Gameboy…whatever…"

"It's a PSP!"

"Again, whatever," she said. "But though it's alright in small doses, you also should get out and run and play and exercise!" For each of her verbs, she did a grand hand gesture or a leap to emphasize it. "I even have a fun way of doing it to where it won't even seem like work! Come on!"

Something in the back of Matt's mind was screaming loudly for him to make a break for it again. Another part of him sensibly reminded him that this child had legs like a cheetah and that running was futile. He had no choice but to endure whatever she had in store for him.

She began her humming again, then singing her weird song. "Yar-har fiddle di-dee. Being a pirate is alright with me! Do what you want cause a pirate is free! You are a pirate!" She danced along to it, but held on to Matt's arm to keep him from leaving.

And so, for a whole painful ten minutes, he was stuck listening to this song, and lamely dancing with her…Oh, she'd make a fine leader as an elementary gym teacher. As for trying to motivate random kids in the playground? Epic failure.

What finally saved Matt was the girl's father coming to retrieve her. Oh thank heavens! Wait, was that her father?! He didn't care. The second she let go of his arm, he took off. He could only pray that she wouldn't again hunt him like the animal she must've been.

He came to an abrupt halt when he crashed into something. A park bench. It came up to about his chest, effectively knocking the breath out of him. He fell over on his side, moaning in pain.

L moved to help him, but that little gesture caught the attention of the park mothers.

From that point onwards, everything went downhill.

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I don't want to give anything away about the next chapter here, so you'll just have to wait for the next one to be posted! Oh, and points to whoever can name the shows where Mello and Matt's surprise visitors came from! As for Matt's…I don't know what the heck hit me to suddenly begin singing that song, but I did and just before writing his part at that. So…I figured it'd be interesting to throw her into the story (not that I watch the show or know much about it. I only know her name from Wikipedia!).

Also, I love all reviews (minus flames) but anonymous ones can become a bit of a bother when someone asks a good question or if I want to inform them more about a part of the story but I can't! You folks know who you are, lol! But I will understand if you have no desire to sign in or create an account all on my behalf. But doing so would be really convenient for replying! ^_^

Okay, now I'm going to ask that everyone review and remember, you are a pirate!


	16. Spotlight

Sorry to have kept you guys waiting! But I want all of you to know that I think that last chapter had the most reviews ever! I'm not saying that in a way of getting more reviews (for though they're nice, as long as I know _someone _is reading the story, I'm thrilled!), but it really amazed me…thank you, thank you and thank you again! You guys truly brighten my day and I'm happy that we have this give and take relationship!

Anywho, I had mentioned to some people, I had some serious updating to do with some of my other stories. And I'm proud to say that at least my Naruto one is almost done! I'm quite proud of it, if you like the show, please check it out, ^_^

Another point. Most of you guessed right as to the shows that the strange characters from the last chapter came from. Honey is from Ouran High School Host Club (if you've never seen it ((it's also a manga, I've just not read it)) then you seriously should! Really funny…although for my male readers, as I've said, it caters more to the fangirls, lol!) As for the other person, Stephanie, she is from the children's' show LazyTown. I don't know much about it my own self…

All in all, I hope you guys enjoy the story. Oh, here's something I've not used in awhile…read it, like it, love it, and review it! Heh-heh…the A.D. Williams catchphrase!

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**

**Spotlight **

L had only meant to reach down and help Matt back up. He says he holds no claims to the chaotic mess that ensued instead.

The purpose of him having chosen a spot in the shade was to not attract attention. Unfortunately, only the bench itself was in the shade. Where Matt fell was in the direct sunlight. The moment L reached out his pale arm to grab him, the park mothers' eyes locked on him like hawks hunting prey. As though a SWAT team, they advanced.

"Martha, we have a suspicious character at twenty clicks east, headed southbound."

"Read ya loud and clear, Sue."

"Target is in my sight, April. Shall I go in for the strike?"

"Affirmative, women. We must save this child!"

They attacked with a force to be reckoned with.

"Back away from the boy, NOW!" one woman screamed, knocking L's arm out of the way. The sudden action made him recoil his hand to his chest.

"I've secured the victim!" A second woman said, holding Matt in her arms. "Retreating from danger zone."

"I've got headquarters on the line," A third shouted to the others, a cell phone to her ear.

"Good job! Let's grab 'em and bag 'em ladies!"

As one, they jumped L. But suddenly, one woman leapt back, nurturing an ankle.

L was sitting on the bench with his feet pulled back, as though about to kick someone again.

"I don't make it a habit of hurting women," he said levelly, "But I will not tolerate being accosted by one either."

"Woman down, woman down!" The ladies screeched, whipping out cell phones and dialing numbers as fast as their fingers would allow.

In moments, the park was ablaze with flashing lights from police, ambulance and even the fire department.

"If there was ever a time for us to fucking run, now would be it," Beyond muttered, trying his hardest to shrink back into the darkness that the woods behind the bench offered. The handcuffs prevented him from making a complete escape though.

"We have nothing to fear," L told him. "We have done nothing wrong and I won't be chased away as though I'm a criminal."

"Yeah, like the police are going to listen to that!" Beyond said. "What, you plan to tell them you're L? Riiight, show them your brilliant deductive reasoning, they're sure to let you go!"

"Beyond? Please shut up."

The boy huffed and crossed his arms, muttering under his breath.

All of the officials were speaking to the women, but finally an officer came over to their bench. "Sir, I'm going to need to see some ID," he said to him.

"Of course," L said amicably, pulling one out. No wallet, just the ID itself. The man took it and read over it, occasionally flicking his eyes up to L.

The picture was of L, that was true. The name on the card read Rue Ryuzaki though. L had let Watari take the picture, with a standard blue expanse as the background. But L's face is what had the officer somewhat…well, thrown off. The man standing before him looked so serious and grave, as though that were his more natural expression. But the person in the photo was actually grinning, a very goofy grin at that. Perhaps like a child smiling for the first time.

"Alright, here you go, Mr. Ryuzaki," the officer said, handing it back. "But I'm going to have to take you down to the station for some questioning. We have reason to suspect you of attempted kidnapping."

"With all due respect sir, this is actually one of my charges," L said casually, pulling a bag of animal crackers out of his pocket and munching on them.

"What the hell are you doing?" Light murmured. The officer's eyes alighted on him when he spoke.

"Oh my god! Is that you, Light? Light Yagami?! Hey! Haven't seen you in forever! What are you doing hanging out with such riff-raff?"

L's fingers stopped midair at that, his eyes narrowing. Riff-raff?! Oh, if only this guy knew the truth about the brunette, he wouldn't be Japan's golden boy any longer. Unfortunately, he didn't have physical proof for that accusation. Yet.

The boy was pleasantly thrilled that his hearing had now come back, but didn't stop to dwell on it. "Oh, hi!" Light said brightly, launching flawlessly into his acting mode. "Yeah, I know it has been some time since I've been down to the station, hasn't it? Sorry, final exams just finished so I had been cramming for that. And now that summer break is here, I kinda wanted some time to just relax, you know?" He gave a beautiful laugh, one that made those in the area turn in awe.

The officer couldn't help but laugh with him. "Yeah, I know what you mean. Anyways, do you know this guy? Or did you just happen to unfortunately be sitting beside him?"

Here was Light's chance. If he said no to knowing L, the detective would be behind bars, alongside much rougher criminals. He could fight, yes, but L's strength as a swift fighter could also be his weakness. His body was like a twig and as we know, twigs are very breakable. He bet the detective wouldn't last two days.

Then again, he was fortunate L hadn't put _him _behind prison bars during his own incarceration. With his effeminate looks, he wouldn't have lasted _one_ day!

"Yes, I know him," Light said. "He's a very good college friend of mine, and in fact was the other person that I gave my freshman address with. He's also really good at tennis and excellent with deductive reasoning."

Wow, was he kissing-up or what? L thought. Painting such a wonderful picture of himself…it was almost embarrassing, actually!

But it had the desired effect. The officer gave L another critical glance to which he returned by looking up at him with a mouth full of crackers, eyes bulging in supposed innocence. A very disturbing image.

"Alright, but just what did you mean by the boy was your charge?" The officer asked.

"Student," L said simply, swallowing hard to force down the food.

"In the middle of summer?"

"Summer school."

"What?!" Matt suddenly shouted, squirming away from the group of people that were around him. "Summer school? Last time I checked, I was one of your—"

But the severe glare L was giving him made him be quiet. Now wasn't the time to prove how smart he was.

"Okay, supposing this is your student. You took them to the park…why?"

"Excuse me, but are you implying that I should keep them in a classroom all day with no breaks?"

"Well, no, but—"

"Because last time I checked, the school laws clearly state that a break must be given to children if for nothing else then for lunch."

"Speaking of which, I'm starving," Beyond muttered. L ignored him.

The officer was about speechless. "I see. Well then. Carry on." He flicked his eyes over L one last time, thankfully missing B who was still standing back in the shadows to where only L could hear him. "And tell your father I said hello, Light. Haven't seen him much since he quit the force for that Kira case. Really, I don't believe there's any way to solve it, but you know your father, always has to try to make a way even when there really isn't one."

"Yeah," Light said, chuckling in his good humor. The officer gave him a smile and finally took his leave.

Slowly, the park cleared up, all of the emergency vehicles leaving. And thankfully, most of the park mothers as well!

"Are they officially gone?" Beyond whispered.

"Yes, Beyond, I'm sure they are. But do know that had you tried to run, I would not have been going with you, meaning you would not have been going anywhere either," L told him. He again took up his crouch on the bench, as did Light, smiling cheekily to himself for some reason.

During the whole encounter, Near hadn't said a word, but instead continued to play with his toys. But now, he'd grown bored of them. Picking them up, he tried to climb up onto the bench, but was too small.

"Midget," Beyond cruelly laughed, easily settling himself in a spot.

Near ignored him and continued to try to pull himself up, straining from the effort. Finally, he was able to swing a leg over the side and hoist himself into the seat.

"Lucky break," Beyond muttered.

Again, Near paid him no mind. Picking back up his toys, he held them to his chest as he put his thumb in his mouth and leaned against L, attempting to fall asleep.

Matt took up a spot on the edge of the woods, laying down in the shade and rubbing his still aching chest.

Back out on the playground, Mello had been oblivious to all the commotion from before, so engrossed was he with Honey's teachings.

"Alright, young one. I have taught you all I know. Now it is up to you on how you use your new found knowledge. A teacher can only show you the door. You must walk through it."

"Didn't that come from, like, _The Karate Kid _or something?" Mello asked him.

Honey shrugged. "I don't know, I was thinking _Mulan._"

Mello shrugged too, then bowed deeply to him. "Arigatou." (Japanese for thank you).

"De nada." (You're welcome)

"That's Spanish."

"Same meaning."

"Ah. Touché!"

They bowed again and then Honey walked off in his own direction. Halfway across the playground, he was joined by a group of much older boys, all of them (and Mello hated to admit this) way too beautiful to be real. Like teenage models!

"I betcha all of them are gay," he comforted himself, watching how a tall, dark boy swung Honey onto his shoulders and the way a set of twins held each other closely. As for the blonde in the group, he was evidently very flamboyant, traipsing around a smaller, brown haired boy. Evident love interest. And the other dark haired guy with glasses…well he was gay for hanging around with gays!

But again, this is what he told himself to make himself feel better. He'd never be the best dresser and such with competition like that around! It seemed he had his first targets in mind for when he decided to utilize his new 'powers'.

Now wasn't the time though. There wasn't anyone in the park really, minus the strange group of boys trying to hide in the shade and a few other women sitting on a nearby bench, reading magazines.

Mello walked up to L and the others. "I'm bored here. When are we leaving?"

"I was simply waiting on you. If you all have had your…fun…then I suppose we can go." Truth be told, now that things had calmed down, L was enjoying the time out. Perhaps he should've brought his laptop. Well, the quicker they got back, the quicker he could use it again.

He was about to stand up, when again, he noticed eyes on him. The two women that were sitting near them were staring. At least they weren't part of the previous mob, but they seemed quite intent on him.

One woman whispered something to her friend and they both giggled. Yes, L knew he was an oddity; it was nothing new to be snickered at.

But surprisingly, the women got up and came over to them. L immediately started mobilizing the others, but Near would not wake up. Instead, he picked the sleeping boy up, holding his toys in the other arm.

"Hi! Are those your children? They're adorable," one woman said. She and her friend were about in their early twenties perhaps. Students at the nearby college?

L blinked and looked down at the white bundle in his arms. Should he claim them or go through the summer school charade again?

"Um…yes, they are mine," he told him. Perhaps saying that the children were his students would again raise suspicions if he were carrying one of them. Then again, there was Mello and Matt who were free enough to simply run away if they were being held hostage.

"Oh, they are so cute!" The girls gushed in varying ways. They actually seemed to be concentrating mainly on Near, how he was curled up with his thumb in his mouth.

The women went on asking questions about them, like their ages and nearly crying as L concocted some sad tale about their parents dying, how they were adopted from an orphanage. He even spoke of how he himself was an orphan and thus could understand their pain.

"That's so sweet of you!" The first woman said. But then she finally asked about Beyond and Light. "Um, who are they?"

L gave a casual glance at them. "Um…another adopted boy," he said, speaking of Beyond. "And the other is just a neighbor."

The girls' eyes landed on the handcuffs. They whispered to each other, and words that sounded like 'bondage' and 'triangle' might've been passed between them. They twittered and giggled the whole time.

Oh great. They thought Beyond was his love-slave? And Light was, what, the perverted neighbor wanting to join in?! Or maybe even he and Light were a couple with Beyond being some kind of boy toy…

All three shuddered visibly at the idea, faces crumpling in disgust.

"I'm dearly sorry, my ladies, I must take my leave," L said politely. On the inside though, he all but hated them.

"Alright. Bye," they said, and gave small waves with their fingers, all the while looking at them with…was that lust?!

Oh yeah, it was definitely time to get the hell out of there. They had over-stayed their welcome.

Hurriedly, L pulled Beyond along with Light not far behind them with the two other boys. Once they were far enough away from the park, they slowed down and L sat Near on his feet, who instead fell to the ground. Opps. He wasn't awake yet. He had no choice but to pick him back up again. At least he was only roughly thirty pounds.

L was fully intent on trying to go back to headquarters, but Beyond had other plans. "Dude, I'm starved. And I know you are too; don't act like those animal crackers filled you. I smell a Mc Donald's and a bakery about two blocks from here. Now you can either try to pull me back to the compound with you where we'll be submitted to more heinous chores or you can be sensible, grab a bite to eat in peace, and stay away from the crazy old coot."

L frowned at Watari being referred to that way, but truth be told, it was really along the lines of what he'd been thinking that whole day. But…a buttered English muffin sounded real good…ah, and with just the right amount of honey too!

He was ashamed to say that he found himself drooling. He wiped the back of a hand across his mouth.

"Fine, we'll get some lunch."

Again, all of the children (Beyond included) shouted out their joy and praises of him. Why was he only praised when it came to food?

Well, they'd made up their minds. Turning the opposite way, he started off down in the direction Beyond had pointed at. But L knew that when it came to them and food, the two could usually spell disaster.

_Just please, please don't let them make a fool of me in public. Please? _

It was all up to fate. Which hadn't been too kind to him as of recently.

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Okay, so there was the chapter you all had been craving. Hope it was all you had wanted and then some! Drop a review, please! ^_^


	17. Fast Food and the Furious

Sorry guys for the late update…TV on the computer is a wonder and only now, after having the internet set up for so long am I indulging in it! Damn you Matt Dallas (watching Kyle XY on Hulu, lol!)...Anyways, hope you guys enjoy the chapter!

Read it, like it, love it and review it!

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Fast Food and the Furious**

The only one in the group that fully knew the area was Light, seeing as how he lived in the city. So, it was he that the rest followed as they made their way to the bakery and McDonald's.

"You know, there really are better restaurants around here," Light was telling them. "I mean, we could actually sit down at a more upscale place and your handcuffs wouldn't be so noticeable under a tablecloth, Ryuzaki."

"Mm, yes, that would be true," L said, not looking at him but keeping his nose in the air to take in the scent of the foods. "But I unfortunately didn't bring much money on me. Fast food is cheap and also can be carried out—"

"Didn't we agree that we're not trying to go back anytime soon?!" Beyond yelled. "Do you _really _want to be back there?!"

L gave him a look out the corner of his eye. "Despite all of today's events, Watari is the only person I really trust. More so than I can say about you…"

Beyond flashed him a grin. "I know, huh?" He threw in a wink with it.

By then, they had reached the avenue that was lined with the various eating spots. As L's eyes scanned the area, they quickly locked on his main goal. He looked to the others.

"If you want, all of you can go ahead on to McDonald's. Beyond, I'm afraid there's no choice but to come with me." He walked over to Light, who gave him a puzzled look and backed away.

"Um…what is it Ryuzaki?" He wondered. He was a bit closer than what he cared for.

"Take Near," he said, gently pushing (but pushing nonetheless) the boy into his arms. Without waiting to see what Light's reaction was, he walked away on toward the store, dragging B with him.

"Wait, Ryuzaki! I'm…not good with kids…" he faltered.

"Pfft, we have to be stuck with Imagay Light?" Mello huffed as they headed to the restaurant. "Great, I betcha we'll have to listen to him rant about hair products or something."

"Mello, where the heck do you get half of your ideas in life?!" Matt asked him.

Mello shrugged. "I'm just cool like that."

"Yes Mello, you undeniably are," Matt said, rolling his eyes to where the other boy wouldn't see.

In the bakery, L put a finger to his mouth as he stared wide-eyed over the display of baked goods.

"May I help you?" A girl asked on the other side of the counter. Another college student. L was getting tired of seeing them.

"Jam!" Beyond shouted, shoving him out the way. "Tell me you guys have strawberry jam!"

"Um…here…" the girl said, and reached down for something. When she straightened up, she held a few condiment packets.

"Oh thank Jesus, you're a life saver!" Beyond shouted, and ripped them open, sucking them dry in seconds. "Oh sweet Buddha, I've died and gone to heaven!"

L tried to ignore him as he continued to stare into the display case. "Do you have any English muffins? And…New York strawberry cheesecake?"

"Strawberry jam filled doughnuts," Beyond gurgled out with jam down his throat. L narrowed his eyes at him.

"Yes, and strawberry jam filled doughnuts," he added. The girl nodded and got to work boxing up their order. When she was finished, she slid it across the counter and backed away, her eyes remaining on the overly-blissful look on Beyond's face as he admired the red jam on his pale fingers.

L jerked the chain to bring the hand away from him. "Can you at least pretend to act normal?"

"Pfft, can you?!" Beyond shot back.

L narrowed his eyes further. "B, don't make me kick you." He turned back to the girl and handed her the money, then grabbed the large bags the boxes had been placed in. Maybe he should've gone back on that cheesecake…and all the doughnuts. It was actually quite a load. Even after he'd handed B his share, it was still a bit to carry. Well…there was another person…looked like Light was going to be doing some manual labor.

They left the store, L all but dragging Beyond as he tried to continuously eat a doughnut, all for L to "accidently" pull his arm holding it further from his mouth. Each time, B would take a few quick steps forward and try it again…as though the learning process of trial and error had no meaning to him.

McDonald's was only a few stores down, a small establishment meant for the business person on the go. As the two entered though, several others rushed past them on the way out. They looked very harried about something…oh no…

And so it was that L's luck had officially reached zero.

At the front counter, he could see a crying Near, a screeching Mello and a aggravated Matt. Light was holding Near, bouncing him in a poor attempt of what real mothers would do in a way to soothe him. At the same time, he was trying to yell something at Mello, who didn't seem to want to hear it from neither him nor Matt.

Why oh why? Why him?! L had lost all hope that a higher deity actually cared about him.

He pushed his way to the front, again effectively pulling the doughnut Beyond held farther from his mouth (you'd think he'd catch the clue to move the bag to his cuffed hand and eat with the uncuffed one).

"What's the problem?" L asked Light.

"Dude, get your kids! I can't take it anymore!" Light said frantically, setting Near down and trying to make a break for it. L grabbed his collar and pulled him back.

"Bail out here, and you're off the task force," he told him.

Light stopped struggling, knowing what not being on the force would mean for him…no keeping tabs on how close they were to catching Kira. Although L had seemed pretty passive about the case as of late…

The detective's eyes roamed over the children. Mello seemed to be screaming about wanting a certain toy with his Happy Meal that the McDonald's hadn't gotten around to selling yet (the toys on display in the stores are generally sold by week…the week for the toy Mello wanted hadn't come yet). Matt was trying to tell him to shut the hell up and just take what they gave him and Near…poor Near was upset with all the noise.

"Everyone shut it!!!" L screamed at the top of his lungs, utilizing every ounce of authority he had. "Mello, they don't have the damn toy, take whatever the hell they give you! Matt, I have this, just place your order! Near, hush it, you'll be fine! Light, be a man and learn to control the situation better! And Beyond, I'm dead serious about kicking you if you don't quit sucking your fingers so damn loud!"

All motion froze. L was panting from the effort of raising his voice like that and his racing heart, but he was proud of himself. Looked like Watari wasn't the only one with a loud voice…then again, looking around, perhaps it was a Wammy's thing…

He stepped up to the counter and placed an order for three Happy Meals and two Big Mac meals, all with Sprites.

"I didn't want Sprite," each person tried to tell him.

"I said be quiet!" L snarled.

"Ryuzaki, I'm not going to let you…" Light started, but the deadly look on L's face made him trail off.

When the order was up, He forcefully shoved each Happy Meal box into a child's hand and gave them a look that dared them to complain about the treatment. He shoved Beyond's food into his bag with his doughnuts and basically did a basketball chest pass as a way of giving Light his.

Whipping around on a heel, he led them out and back onto the street, a line of silent bodies following. Should he give them a speech? Chew their ears off? Try grounding the younger ones? No…he believed he had done the trick. They hadn't even opened the boxes of food, but obediently walked in a straight line with Light bringing up the back.

He'd done it! He'd finally learned how to make children obey! Scream at them! If that was all that needed to be done, why did so many parents have problems with their kids?

…Of course it's not that simple, but L would learn that later.

He wasn't sure where he was leading them, but it seemed he was going further from the compound. After awhile, he noticed he was in a nice, suburban neighborhood. As he continued walking, there was a large, yellow house that appeared familiar…where had he seen it before…?

"Um, Ryuzaki? Any reason why you just led us to my house?" Light asked.

Oh. That's why it looked recognizable. L remembered it back from when he had been secretly watching the Yagami (*cough* Light! *cough*) household.

Suddenly, the front door to the house opened.

"Light!" Mrs. Yagami gushed upon seeing her son. She ran down the steps and out the front gate and hugged him, bringing his head down to her bosom and holding him tightly.

"Would it sound gross if I said that I wanted that?" Mello whispered, pointing to the scene with his thumb.

"Ew! Dude, yes! She's like, fifty or something!" Matt said back.

Mello just shrugged.

"Oh, who are all your friends?" Sachiko asked.

"Um…this is…Ryuzaki…" Light said, quickly trying to come up with excuses for all she was seeing. "Uh…he works at juvenile delinquent center…um, the boy chained to him is a bit of a handful, so that's why they're like that."

_Juvenile delinquent?! _Beyond thought. _Oh, I only wish!_

"The other children are from an orphanage that Ryuzaki also volunteers at," Light went on.

"So…you have children…around a juvenile delinquent?" Mrs. Yagami asked, turning to L.

"Your son made Beyond sound worse than what he was," L began.

_Shit! _Light thought. _That boy got off pretty easily with all I could've said about him! _

"Beyond is just a bit emotionally disturbed and has a way of harming himself. To keep a better eye on him, I've been allowed to handcuff him to me," L said.

Beyond looked at Sachiko and gave an angelic smile. Her heart leapt and she couldn't help but give one back.

"Well, how about you boys come inside for a bit. I see you have food, so it'll give you a chance to actually sit and eat. Better for digestion, you know."

"Mom!" Light said, automatically heading into his house. The others filed in after him.

L couldn't see the future, but he knew that none of the boys had been in an actual house probably since their parents had died. He didn't want to go in, but his arm was getting tired of holding the heavy boxes from the bakery. Well…maybe a quick stop inside wouldn't hurt…

Maybe…

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Great, now I've unleashed the Wammy kids on the Yagami household! Untamed and uncut! ^_^ Well, I hope you guys liked this chapter…the McDonald's thing kinda made me think of me and my siblings when we were younger, especially on our lovely two week move from Alaska to Louisiana when I was about nine. Except for us, we'd argue about who's Azazu from the Lion King II toys was who's when we all had the same damn toy! Anyways, please review!


	18. To L and Beyond, With Love

Wow, this chapter came out a tad longer than what I wanted…I kinda crammed a lot of stuff in here. Oh well, I know you guys will enjoy it (although I don't mean that to say that I got lazy with things…I hope it doesn't read that way, xD!). Again, gracias on all the love and support from you guys! Laments would be nothing without ya!

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**To L and Beyond, With Love**

The moment Light stepped across the threshold and noticed that the rest of the group had followed him in was the same moment that he noticed he had made a huge mistake. It was a natural habit for him to just turn into the front yard of his home when coming down the street. In fact, rarely had he ever gone to the other end of it. Old habits die hard and this one was about to cost him. Big time.

"Light, you and your friends can sit at the table and eat," Mrs. Yagami said pleasantly as she made her way to the kitchen. She picked up a wooden ladle off of the counter and began stirring something in a pot, humming to herself.

The brunette paused in the hallway and turned around to the others. "Listen up. This is my house, meaning my rules. I don't want to see you guys anywhere you shouldn't be, touching anything that doesn't belong to you or—"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever," Beyond muttered, pushing past him and dragging L with him to the kitchen.

Light looked like he seriously wanted to choke him.

"That smells really good, Mrs. Yagami," Beyond said sweetly, giving her his new smile again.

She blushed. "Oh, thank you dear! It's an old family recipe! But…well, for such a sweet gentleman as yourself, I'm willing to share it!"

"Oh really! Gee, that sounds real swell!" Beyond gushed.

By now, Light had not only done a literal face-palm, but was keeping his hand over his face to hide the pissed-off expression he couldn't get rid of.

The smaller children pushed past him and into the kitchen also. Each set down his food on the table and by actually using teamwork, managed to drag over a few chairs and stand on them, so as to watch Mrs. Yagami cook.

"Oh my, I have an audience today? I feel almost like I have my own show!" Sachiko patted her hair self consciously, as though flustered.

"Don't worry ma'am. I'm sure whatever you make will be divine," Beyond said in a low, husky voice right in her ear. At the last minute, he turned his attention to the contents of the pot. Taking the spoon from her, he sampled the pasta she was making, closing his eyes in ecstasy. After the taste had settled, he slowly opened his eyes again, half lidded. "Absolutely exquisite," he said breathlessly.

By now, Mrs. Yagami had tuned out everyone else around her and was nearly a puddle of mush on the floor.

_Oh hell no, he is _not_ buttering up my mom! _Light seethed. But it was too late. Mrs. Yagami was taken with Beyond and for the next ten minutes, she carefully and slowly went over with him everything that she was making, had made, and would make in the future, seemingly prolonging reasons for the boy to stay by her side.

By default, L was trapped there as well, but since the children had vacated their chairs (all but Near), he gladly set his stuff down on the floor and had a seat. His legs were a bit tired from walking around so much and thus, he didn't sit the way he normally would, but instead copied Near's half drawn-up position, one leg hanging down.

Mello and Matt had taken a seat in the living room, where Light was also stationed, body tense and waiting for the inevitable drama to begin. He wasn't paying any attention to what was on the TV until he heard loud whispers coming from the boys.

"Oh man…looks like L has a major fangirl," Matt was saying.

"Looking like that, I wouldn't mind!" Mello muttered appreciatively.

What the heck were they talking about? Light pulled himself out of his inner shell enough to take in what had caught their eye. A commercial of some sort…a perfume one. Nothing special, only reason he'd ever actually sit through such a thing would be to consider buying it for his mother or sister as a present.

But what did L have to do with this one? He paid closer attention…and then understood.

The perfume was called L…in nearly the same font that was used as L's insignia…

Gwen Stefani knew L?!

L himself heard the whispers and got up to see what it was. The chain allowed him to go to the living room doorway without interrupting the private moment between Beyond and Mrs. Yagami.

The first words he heard when he stopped at the entrance froze him in his spot:

"I want you all over me."

…This woman…wanted him?!

She swam around in a large, luxurious pool wearing a simple red bathing suit. In her hand she held an orange glass bottle with his name on it…nearly exactly as how he wrote it…

No…no possible way…was she trying to lure him out?! Was…Gwen Stefani Kira?!

_No, don't be ridiculous, _L thought to himself. But as the commercial continued, she said it again: "I want you all over me."

Now wasn't the time for him to start blushing, especially since all eyes were on him. Even Beyond had divided part of his interest into watching the detective.

Finally, the commercial ended, leaving a stunned silence. L shyly shuffled his feet, scratching one foot with the other and also reaching a hand up to rub the back of his head. "This was simply a coincidence…nothing more," he murmured, trying to get his awkward feelings under control.

"Look man…if you don't want her, pass her here!" Mello said.

L frowned at him. "That's actually quite disturbing Mello and I would rather not hear anything else like that from you. As for this woman…well, I suppose it's no different than the news channels using Kira's insignia when broadcasting about him. I'm sure this was in no way a reference to me."

Beyond had again turned back to Sachiko and thus she hadn't heard any of their conversation.

"Yeah, that's what you say," Matt snickered. "She seemed to know you _very well. _Is there something you're not telling us?"

"Matt, there's no possible reason why I would know this woman," L said, proud that his stupid human emotions had ebbed away and that he could get back to his usual impassive self.

"Suure, but what if…she's an undercover detective!" the redhead shouted gleefully.

L sighed. This had gone on long enough…but he knew he wasn't ever going to hear the end of it. "If she is then she is. I have no dealings with her regardless." He turned around and went back into the kitchen, rummaging in his bakery bag for something to munch on.

"I betcha she was doing a code call to get L's attention," Mello said, Matt nodding with him. "Gwen Stefani and L, unite!"

_I'm impressed with you, Ryuzaki, _Light thought. _When did you start getting women like that? She makes Misa look like a joke! _But at the same time, he knew that it was as L said, pure coincidence…but still, it was fun to imagine.

Suddenly the front door opened and a girl's laugh could be heard.

"Alright, see you tomorrow!" the girl said, then the door was shut. Two thuds were heard as her shoes were removed, then the sound of running feet. The person came up short at the end of the hall.

Sayu paused at the sight of the full living room and kitchen. If nothing else, at least her half estranged brother was there but…who were the rest of these kids?

"Um…hi, Light," she said.

Light sighed, then geared up a smile. But before he could say anything else, the door opened again. A moment later, a large figure came to stand beside the girl.

Soichiro Yagami.

_Oh crap…_

The man's eyes roved over everyone, all faces he knew but none that he wanted in his house…well, minus his beloved son anyways.

"Light…may I have a word with you?"

The teen gave an audible gulp. "Um…sure, dad." He was led away upstairs and into his father's room. Once upon a time, such a summoning would foreshadow a severe punishment…was he too old at the age of eighteen to be grounded?

The door was closed behind him and before his father could say anything, Light had an uncharacteristic moment of babbling. "Dad, it's not my fault! They followed me here! We were supposed to go back to the compound after we went to McDonald's and instead Ryuzaki just started walking around and next thing you know we were here and then mom invited them in and I really wasn't for it but it was too late and now…and now…they're here."

Soichiro Yagami let out a huge sigh. "Light, my son. I seriously don't want to think about the idea of all of them in this house…especially Beyond. What have they been up to so far?"

"Well…the younger ones are watching TV…Near's been hanging out beside L and mom and Beyond…well, mom seems kinda smitten with him."

Soichiro stiffened. "You let that monster get close to your mother?!"

"Well, he was being quiet and good and—"

"Don't you remember that his quiet moments are the worst moments?! It means he's gearing up for another one of his hellish acts!"

"But he wouldn't do anything to mom! He wants her favor!"

"And for what?! What does a teenage boy really have to gain from being sweet to an older woman like Sachiko?! Unless…no!"

"What dad?!"

"He…you don't think he's trying to get her to adopt him…do you?"

Light was silent. He and his father met each other's eyes.

"No…that's just silly," Soichiro said, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Anyways, I'm home for the night. Will you be staying as well?"

Light was about to say yes, but then the most disturbing thought occurred to him. The nights his father stayed were sleepless ones for him. His mother missed his father terribly when he was gone and well…it's like they tried to cram days of absence into one night. One long…loud…sleepless night.

"No, I think I'll go back to headquarters," Light mumbled, looking at the ground. Poor Sayu…for her sake, he hoped she hadn't misplaced her iPod and headphones.

"Well, alright then. Let's get back downstairs. I don't like leaving your mother unattended," Soichiro said, leading the way.

When he entered the kitchen, the first thing he did was wrench Beyond away from his wife. The boy gave him a startled look for a moment, then grinned. All hints of his sweet side vanished in that moment. "Hello, Soichiro Yagami, ex-member of the NPA. My, my…just look at the life you have! A cute daughter, a perfect son…and quite the wife, if I may say so myself."

Soichiro glared at the boy with loathing. Was it wrong to hit a minor? He wasn't a police officer anymore, so the crime wouldn't be as bad…

Suddenly Sachiko turned to the others. "Dinner's ready!"

"Uh, we've already eaten mom," Light said, trying to avoid the others from staying any longer.

"Oh, nonsense! You call fast food a proper meal? Besides, I've cooked enough for everyone to have plenty and it's nice to have company as well."

"Yeah, but we really need to get going and—"

Sachiko leveled him with a glare. "You are staying for dinner young man and that is final."

Light didn't miss the small flicker she gave to Beyond. So that's how it was.

"Alright. Forgive me mom; you really do make an awesome pasta," Light conceded in his "good boy" way.

The others gathered around the table and L watched with held back displeasure as he witnessed Mello, Matt and Near grab the toys out of their boxes and then chuck their Happy Meals in the trash. Or rather, before they were intercepted by Beyond. The teen grabbed them and dumped the contents of each into the bag that held his own food. Rations for later.

With that, so began dinner with the Yagamis'.

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Nothing really to say here. Forgive the chapter length, it wasn't planned. And thanks to you, vegetaworshipper92 for becoming my new (well, first…) beatareader! ^_^


	19. Reasons of Regret

Wow, took me forever to update this time, eh? Sorry, my attention has been pulled everywhere but at this story (had a nostalgic moment with Inuyasha, wrote my first Code Geass story, and my little brother and I played the hell out of Kindom Hearts 1 and 2! Ahh…I sense another story for that section coming soon from yours truly…).

Basically, all that is to say that my mind wasn't very focused on this chapter and that's also mainly because I seriously should've ended the dinner thing last chapter (never had any intentions of them staying for it. A huge motive to actually _plan _out stories!). My muse gave a feeble cough, a shuddering breath, and finally collapsed over dead right before my eyes as I stared at my blank Word document. What I managed to scramble up is probably only a shadow of what I usually write, so do forgive me here. Anywho, after re-reading it, I managed to get a few chuckles, but the main plot I wanted will be shown in the next chapter. Until then, try to enjoy this one.

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**Reasons of Regret**

"So dad, how's work been going?" Sayu asked once everyone was situated at the table. "We all know you're working on the Kira investigation. Any closer to catching him?"

"You know I'm not privileged to tell you that," Soichiro told her has he tiredly plopped a mound of mashed potatoes on his plate.

"Aw, c'mon! You don't have to tell me anything confidential. Okay, how about what L's like! I mean, all we normal people ever get to see of him is a white screen with that creepy letter on it along with that synthetic voice."

Light flicked L a discreet glance. L sat in his seat, eyes wide and looking almost stupid with the staring he was doing.

"Ryuzaki, dear, would you like some of the green beans?" Mrs. Yagami said as the bowl with the food came his way.

"No thank you. I don't eat vegetables," he told her.

Light face-palmed. Here goes another example of his lack of social etiquette.

"Um…everyone needs vegetables," the woman told him. "Or else you'll start to suffer from diseases and malnutrition…" her voice trailed off as she fully took in his appearance. It seemed to her that these ailments had already struck L.

"Don't worry about him, ma'am," Beyond said, actually reaching out to grab her face and gently turn it back towards him. "He's a hopeless one. But if you'd like, I would be honored to taste anything you serve me."

She again blushed a bright red, her hand shaking as she put the vegetables on his plate.

Beyond daintily picked up a piece with his fork and ate it. He closed his eyes and let loose a small moan of pleasure. "Sachiko, what is it that you're doing to me?" he half panted.

Soichiro tried to throw a reprimanding glare at his wife for her behavior (he'd deal with B back at headquarters), but she was too focused on the boy.

"Anywho, so dad, you really know nothing about L?" Sayu said, trying to ease the tension. "I bet he must be really ugly. I mean, no one's seen him or can at least guess him so he must be in hiding because he's hideous. And I bet he's a computer nerd too! One of those fat, geeky guys that have rooms full of technology and constantly play World of Warcraft or something."

Since L wasn't eating the normal dinner, he had nothing to keep his hands busy. He instead put forth an effort not give this ignorant girl a serious reality check. He looked over to the three younger boys. Mello was artfully spinning his pasta around his fork, then shoveling it down his throat. Matt was less creative and simply slurped it up like anime characters do. And Near…well, Near's small fingers had trouble holding the fork, so he'd ditched it in favor of his fingers. L was dismayed to see sauce all over his face. Picking up his napkin, he wetted it with his tongue and proceeded to clean him off. Near fussed, but L wasn't having any of it.

"…And I bet he smells funny too," Sayu was saying, continuing on with her list of what she thought L was like. "And he has greasy hair and bad skin."

Was it really possible that it was only the males in the Yagami household that had a brain? No...he really wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt that she was smarter than this, but when someone is rattling off a list about what you might look like and has next to no evidence to base it off of, it's hard to call them anything but dumb.

_And this is why I hate women, _he thought to himself.

"Sayu, that's completely silly," Light said, giving a small chuckle. So harmonious. Everyone stopped talking when Light spoke. The voice of a god. "Anyways, dad's not seen him. And even if he had, he couldn't tell you, like he said. So…why don't you tell us something that's been happening with you?"

_Yes, I must make sure that L knows that I'm such a caring brother, _Light mused. _There's always time to be Kira, but for now, I'm Light Yagami, good-natured older brother and ace-student son. _

Of course L saw the switch-up in personalities; Light's goody-two-shoes acts were way too noticeable to him. But he let it go, inwardly happy at the change of conversation.

…Not that it did much good for soon everyone had again focused his attention on him as he licked a small English muffin off his plate, wrapper and all. He chewed around it for awhile, and then pulled the paper covering out his mouth, completely smooth and devoid of food. He heard Sayu give a quiet "Whoot!" of approval.

But besides that, he was shocked at how well the dinner went. No explosions, no food fights, no huge magnets that could lift and stick a human being to the ceiling (L snickered at the image of when that happened to Light). But still…there was going to be another shoe that would drop. He knew it. He was cursed and it was only a matter of time before all hell broke loose.

Yet the next thing he knew, Light had ushered all of them to the door and they were saying their good-byes to the Yagami family. L was dimly aware of Beyond hugging Mrs. Yagami very tightly and her giving him a tearful farewell, repeatedly telling him to come back soon. Soichiro was giving him a handshake and whispered something in his ear. "…Keep Beyond away from my fucking wife or he's dead," is what it sounded like. But perhaps he'd only imagined this.

Maybe…just maybe his luck had changed? Dare he have a bit of hope?

"We should take a train back," Mello said.

Oh no. Here we go again…

"A bit of walking never hurt anyone," L said, nibbling his thumb. Beyond saw it and yanked the chain to where it violently pulled the finger out his mouth.

"Payback," he smirked.

L narrowed his eyes at him. "You're seriously asking for a roundhouse." To Mello he said, "Also, I'm pretty broke as of the moment. The food binge was my limit."

"Pfft, who told you to get a million sweets?!" The boy shot back. "I mean, why can't you eat actual food like normal people?"

"And eating 'normal food' would be cheaper than sweets?"

Mello opened his mouth as though to say something, but came up empty.

"My feet hurt," Near suddenly whimpered.

Light immediately started walking very fast ahead of them. He was _not _carrying that kid again! And already he'd been carried for half the trip, how dare he complain about hurting feet!!

"You'll be alright for a little bit, Near," L told him. "The compound is only a few more blocks away."

"So we're really walking back?!" Mello shouted.

"We're really _going_ back?!" Beyond said.

"Yes and yes! Now stop complaining!" The detective snapped. If there was ever a reason to remain a recluse, this was it. Or maybe, he needed to take a few lessons from Matt…how did the boy manage to be so absent although his physical being was surrounded by others?

It was a huge relief when the headquarters came into view. Evidently L wasn't the only one who thought that, since the kids broke out into a run to get there (yes, even Near…who more or less waddled after them). Light and Beyond though slowed down their walking to such a point that they were actually dragging their feet.

"Oh wow! I seem to have been struck with slow-mo-itis!" Beyond said. "It's a rare condition of extreme slowing of the body. L, don't let me hold you up, man. Go ahead and uncuff yourself and get inside. You deserve to be back in the sanctity of you're current residence."

"Beyond, that is the most horrendous lie I have ever heard, and I've heard some pretty bad lies," L told him, trying to pull him along. "And let me guess Light. You're 'struck' with this as well?"

"Nope, I plain and simple don't care too much for going back in there," he said. It would mean being trapped with Beyond again…who, though was cuffed, was clever enough to perhaps find a way to be a terror still. Then again…staying home would've meant having to deal with his parents 'alone time' which wasn't really alone since everyone and their dog who lived within fifty yards of the house became an unwilling listener.

Was this what his days had come down to? To have to choose between Beyond's antics or his parents friskiness?! He really didn't want to dwell on this any longer. He'd made his choice and it was best not to show any weaknesses to it. Lifting his feet up now, he actually walked the remaining distance to the building.

L and Beyond had managed to make it inside before him so as he passed through the security system (the electronic voice warning _him _that he too would be shot for trespassing), he was greeted by Ryuzaki's face when he first came through the door.

"Light, you have a visitor," he said, looking at him with his wide, staring eyes. The fact that any woman could imagine him with this creepy man was utterly disturbing.

"Alright, are they in my room or—" He was cut short as something tackled him. The first thought that came to his mind was that Beyond was seeking revenge for something…if anything the boy was indebted to him for his smooth talking back at the park. But this assumption was quickly cleared when he heard the next word.

"Liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiight!!!" Misa screamed from on top of him. "I missed you, sweetie!!"

Oh gods, please kill him now.

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Ah yes, I have Misa here! I felt this story needed a few random characters dragged in. Anyways, I'd still love to hear your guy's feedback. Gracias!

Oh, and to all you Mello and Matt lovers out there, my friend **vegetaworshipper92** has some nice stories about those two. I know that perhaps Light and L are the new thing, but take a trip back down memory lane (as I did with Inuyasha), and go check the stories out, neh? They're all one-shots I believe, so they're quick reading!

Also, to my beta, do not think that I posted this without you looking over it as me being rude please! As I said, I know you have school and I feel horrible for pressing you to look over it with so much on your own plate. It seems selfish to me for some reason. Gomen nsai.


	20. Devotion to Promotion

Chay, I'm finally back with a new chapter! And ah, it's been an interesting pause I suppose. I've finally wrangled my younger brother into watching Death Note. And…he loved it!! He's just as fascinated with L as the rest of us also (although as a guy, it's for different reasons, lol!). Also…he supports Kira and actually asked me that if he were Kira, would I kill him. Sorry kid, but I think I probably would…I love ya, but such a power just wasn't meant for humans to have. Actually, I have mixed emotions on that question, but I'll save it for another day!

Anywho, read it, like it, love it and please review it!

* * *

**Devotion to Promotion**

"M-Misa…what are you doing here?" Light asked the girl as he pushed her off of him and stood up. "And why are you inside? I thought you weren't allowed in."

"Matsu let me in," she said. "He really can be a sweetheart!"

Light glared at the man.

"Hey, she about had a heat stroke! It's nearly a hundred degrees!" Matsuda yelled in his defense.

_Then you should've left her ass out there! _Light yelled mentally. Out loud to Misa he said, "Well…I suppose you're here now…" He led her away upstairs, figuring she had Kira-related business to discuss with him as well.

"Wow…" Beyond muttered as he watched them walk away. "_My life is brilliant…my love is pure. I saw an angel, of that I'm sure…_"

"Please tell me you're not singing _You're Beautiful_!" Mello yelled at him. "I mean, sure, whatever, Misa might be pretty, but c'mon…you'd have to be blind not to notice how…annoyingly ubiquitous she can be!"

"Spell 'ubiquitous'," Near challenged.

"How about I spell my fist in your face?" Mello snarled.

"Anyways," Matt cut in. "Beyond, I'm sure you remember how the song ended, right? He doesn't get the girl. And besides…I thought you were infatuated with Mrs. Yagami."

Beyond shrugged. "What's wrong with two women at once?"

Suddenly L made a quiet gagging sound. Everyone's eyes landed on him. "Oh, sorry, I just threw up a little in my mouth. B, are you saying you honestly have feelings for Mrs. Sachiko?"

"Hey, an older lady like that is starved for a young hunk like me," Beyond grinned. "Soichiro can't hang on my level!"

Mello, Matt and Near all made gagging sounds like L had, each in turn repressing the urge to vomit.

"I'm going to act like I didn't hear that," L said and walked away from him as far as the chain would allow. The younger children left them, trying to mainly leave the teenager behind.

Fine, good thing they thought him being with an older woman was repulsive. More for him! But at the current moment…there was a beautiful blonde just a few floors up. She and he needed to have a talk as well…she didn't seem to have noticed, but he knew that she had the shinigami eyes. Just like him.

Oh, and a last name that began with an A as well! Beyond was a bit partial to A names, especially if the person was female. He and A from Wammy's had been…very close friends, to put it gently. She was first in line to be L's successor. But the pressure of it all had been too much for her. She had taken her own life. L should've just had a damn child and left them out of this! Innocent children were expected to take on the world, literally. It made his blood boil to think of it.

He quietly entered the downstairs bathroom to check his appearance, dragging L with him. The detective was made to wait outside the door for him like some sort of servant. He stood against a wall, trying to appear nonchalant but now he was experiencing the downside of them being chained together and wasn't happy about it at all.

In the bathroom, B looked over himself. Miss Amane was a model after all. He should look his best if he wanted any chances of wooing her. "In due time, she _will _be mine," he whispered in the mirror. "_Heh heh heh._ No…more like, _Ha ha ha ha_! Hmm…too happy-sounding. _Mwhahahaha_! Too evil? Perhaps. _Hyuk hyuk hyuk_ –"

"Dude, hurry the hell up! I have to piss so bad I'm starting to see yellow!" But of course such words could only belong to Mello.

Beyond sighed and ripped the door open. There were plenty of other bathrooms to check himself in after all, but maybe it was best if she just saw him as him? And besides…primping just wasn't really his thing.

"Man, what took you so long?!" the younger boy said. "You were mumbling to yourself and then…wait…were you…practicing your laugh?!! My gods, you're _sick_!" His eyes grew to their widest limit before he backed slowly away from the teen. As soon as his feet hit the tile of the bathroom, he quickly slammed the door shut and a click could be heard as he locked it.

Hey, not everyone had a cute laugh. Sometimes it needed to be practiced. But Beyond shrugged him off and sauntered upstairs, this time dragging L with him…who honestly seemed quite curious to see where he was going. Light's room was on the fourth floor, if he wasn't mistaken. Second door to the left? That's where it sounded like voices were coming from. They stood for a moment outside of it, listenening. Nothing was wrong with eavesdropping, unless you were caught. As long as you weren't, no one was all the wiser to your actions but you. And since L wasn't exactly on the total justice side, he wasn't opposed to it.

"Light, I really love you. Why can't you see that?" Misa was saying.

"Misa…you just randomly ran into me and you figured you loved me? Please…do everyone a favor and think about this sensibly! Love at first sight isn't love, it's lust! I'm young, I'm beautiful, I'm great at all things—"

It took everything in Beyond not to splutter out loud at Light's list of personal greatness. L on the other hand actually snorted.

"I mean, I can see why you might _think _you love me, but…I know that if you really thought about it, you'd see that it's nothing more than a silly childish crush."

"No, I know how I feel! It's love; I just know it!" Misa countered.

Light sighed. "I chew with my mouth open," he said.

"And?"

"I snore like an old man," he added.

"Fine, they have nasal strips for that."

"I get off by looking at pictures of the lead singer from Tokio Hotel," he said in a dead serious voice.

"Fine, I do too!"

"HA! You have affections for another man! I couldn't possibly ever be with you!" Light said, and it could be assumed that he was pointing an accusing finger at Misa.

"Well, you do too, pointing out that you might be possibly gay! I mean, I try to ignore all the jokes about your last name and everything but…Light…is it true?"

Light grew silent and Beyond imagined that he was perhaps lowering his head humbly, eyes closed. "Yes Misa…it's true. I'm…g-gay," he said with a bit of strain in his voice.

Beyond couldn't hold it back any longer. He burst into the room, laughing his full shinigami laugh. "_Hyuk hyuk hyuk hyuk!_ Brilliant, just brilliant!" He smiled brightly for Light. "Please Light, tell her again. Tell her all of it!"

_Oh, not the crazy look again! _Light thought. "What the hell are you doing in here? And Ryuzaki…were you two spying on us?"

"Now, now, Light," L said. "I own this building, meaning I'm entitled to do as I please. And besides, spying is such a strong word. I'd much rather prefer…being a willing listener to the woes of your life."

"AKA, spying!" Light shouted. "That's low…that's beyond low—"

"Hey, I never knew that was a level!" Beyond said. "Beyond low…is that the lowest that it gets?"

"Okay, I think everyone has lost it," Misa muttered, getting up. "Light, even if you do strangely please yourself to pictures of Bill Kaulitz, I do have feelings for you. But…I see that with your orientation, we could never be together. But I'll always keep you in my heart!" She cried out.

_What the hell? I have to pretend to be gay for her not to like me? What kind of bullshit is that?! _

"Well Misa, I appreciate that. But my heart does not yearn for the touch of woman but that of man!" Light said dramatically.

As he continued his Shakespearian speech, L pulled out a cookie and Beyond found a pack of jam in his pocket. They ate, mesmerized by the acting.

"Ooh, he's good," Beyond whispered to the detective.

L nodded. "Yes, so I've heard. Did you see him when he played in that Transformers movie? Very powerful acting."

"Oh, I can only imagine," the teen nodded appreciatively.

"And so, in conclusion," Light was saying, "I am not going to hide it any longer! I'm coming out and I want the world to know, got to let it show! This is me, world! Embrace me in your arms and hold me tenderly! Give me liberty or give me death!"

At the emotional outcry, everyone gave him a standing ovation while he stood there in a pose, one foot on the coffee table as though it were a stool, his hands raised in some sort of pleading motion to the heavens. Sniffles were heard as tears were barely suppressed.

But the clapping was just a bit too loud. It seemed the rest of the task force had been witness to the speech!

_Well, if nothing else, at least my father isn't here…_

Misa was fully in tears, clapping the hardest. "That's right, you tell 'em, Light! I must let you be free!" She gave him a tight squeeze, and then ran out of the room crying.

Slowly, silence fell in the room, the clapping coming to an end.

"So, um, Light…" Aizawa began. "Is it true? I mean, it's your business and all, but…you know…"

"Yeah," Matsuda said. "I mean, it's Misa-Misa! How can anyone turn down a girl like that?"

Light sighed. "No, damnit, it's not true! But tell me, would you rather have her hanging around?"

"Actually, I would," L suddenly said, stepping forward. He brushed the last crumbs of his cookie on his jeans as he approached, the tail end of the sweet in his mouth. "Mm, you see, even though you two are free, I still suspect you of being Kira. Unfortunately, I have yet to have come up with any physical proof of this, but make no mistake that you have not been cleared from me mentally. With Amane here, I could keep a watch on her, but there's nothing that I could hold her here on at the moment."

"Oh, you suspect Light of being Kira, do you?" Beyond said. Well, well, wasn't that interesting! The perfect Light Yagami, trying to create a perfect world by punishing the criminals. What made it even more amusing is that he could really see it happening. Ah, more reasons to torment him!

Light could've sworn Beyond had already been told this, but decided not to comment on it. "Anyways, my plan against Misa worked. Now we no longer have to deal with her."

Or so he thought.

That evening, L had to train Beyond about the method to use to bathe themselves since they were cuffed together. L had taken off the handcuffs only long enough to let them slip out of their shirts, then returned it to their wrists.

The point was that even though they were cuffed, they could still shower in privacy with the extra person waiting his turn by sitting on the counter or closed lid of the toilet. But Beyond had no shame or desire to hide himself and unabashedly left the curtain open and insisted on leaving the door open too.

"I just can't see why Light would let such a girl go," he was saying as he scrubbed his chest. "I really wanted her, you know. Amane, Amane, Amane…ah, what I would've done for her…"

"Beyond, please, change the topic. I don't think I like the idea of you talking about women while completely nude," L said, refusing to look his way and instead focused his attention on the wallpaper of the room.

"Aw, don't tell me you're ashamed of the naked body, Ryuzaki! You can look, don't worry, I won't call you a pervert or anything!"

_Don't strangle him, don't strangle him, don't strangle him! _L thought. He decided not to say anything and just continue his staring at the oh-so-beautiful wall print of…ducks.

After the shower from hell was over (L had indeed tried to pull the curtains closed on the boy several times; Beyond had ripped it back again and L had grown tired of fighting with him), the two settled down in an upper room with the others. The younger boys, supervised by Mello, had bathed together again. It was amazing that everyone was still alive and breathing.

The news was playing quietly in the background as they worked, each man to his own assignment. It was around eight-thirty that the announcement was made.

"This just in: Over seventy criminals have mysteriously suffered heart attacks across the world. It appears Kira has struck again and with a vengeance!"

Light could only inwardly groan. Misa. She had taken the unfairness of not being able to have him out on the world. Sad day to be a criminal, eh?

But seventy…all on her own? No…she had to have had help. But from whom?

Then it struck him. Mikami! He had given the man his Death Note for safe keeping, and though the man had been willing to punish criminals for him, it seemed that he too had over stepped his boundaries. Looked like he'd have to have a little chit-chat with him.

…Which meant dealing with a grown Kira fanboy. Ugh…let the ass-kissing and worshipping begin!

* * *

Who would I be to have Misa mentioned in this story but no Mikami? ^_^ I'm still working on whether or not the shinigami will be in here, for I don't want this to fully turn over into the Kira investigation seeing as how that's not supposed to be the main focus here. Also, I'm again working on diverting the plot back to the kids rather than letting Beyond have so much screen time! Bare with me folks. Well, enough of the rambling. Please review!


	21. Nefarious Near

Okay, I'll admit this isn't one of my better chapters, but I did say that I wanted to attempt to give the kids their own chapter. So, I've started with Near, ^_^ And…being honest, I'm not sure if Mello will have one just for him. He seems to dominate the scene when it comes to the little ones. Matty deserves to shine for once! Also, this story should be finished by chapter 25, so I need to get on with moving the plot along (…which even I don't know how this is going to end, so we're all going to be in for a surprise!). Anywho, I hope you can enjoy some part of this. Again, forgive my lapse in creativity.

* * *

**Nefarious Near**

Late that night while everyone slept, Light lay in bed thinking about his plan to contact Mikami. He knew that there were cameras around the building, but wasn't sure where all they were. He strangely hadn't thought of this when he spoke to Misa earlier, but at least she didn't bring Kira up. There had to be one in the bedrooms for sure. L could even access them from his laptop rather than using just the main computer systems on the first floor. So, calling the man was out. A text? Ugh, there was so much that needed to be said though. He could compose various text messages and then send them one after the other. Then again…nine times out of ten, Mikami would send him a slew of texts back! And what Light seriously couldn't afford was L looking over the tapes and wondering just who was so important as for him to contact by text in the middle of the night

Also, hearing Mikami's vocal praises were enough. Did he really want to see them in writing too?! No, he could seriously forego that. Well, fine. He'd contact the man in the morning, when his actions would be less noticeable. As his eyes drifted closed, he noted that the time on the Pikachu clock said 12:03.

Yeah, I know. Don't ask.

- - -

L had tried to scrounge up some cases on the internet, but nothing really seemed worth his time investigating. Kidnappings? Well, his personal rule was either 10 victims or more, or if it personally interested him. This was neither. A six year old who had a habit of wandering anyways. Who knows, the kid might've ran away from home. Regardless, such a case was beneath him.

Alright, a robbery? No…liquor store robberies were way too common. Okay, fine, a bank robbery? Another personal rule, a million dollars (or equivilant of that in whatever country's currency he was dealing with) had to be on the line. This one was…only two hundred dollars, stolen from a customer who just so happened was about to make a deposit. Well, that epically sucks. But yet again, a case that the local police could surely handle.

L groaned in disappointment, his noise making Beyond shift on the bed. Thankfully he didn't wake up. The boy was actually peaceful looking like that. He was snoring lightly, splayed wildly on the mattress with his face in a pillow. His hair was completely disheveled, but when wasn't it?

He'd made up a bit for the bath scene by straightening up their room before bedtime. B actually liked orderliness. While L was content to let his clothes lay in a pile and let Watari collect them to do laundry, Beyond immediately fell upon them like a hyena and chucked them in the laundry hamper. Then had the audacity to glare at him! While L had been munching on a snack at the computer, B had tsked nearly the entire time at the crumbs falling on the table.

Such a contrast from how he behaved in public, L thought. He wasn't OCD or anything, for even Beyond could leave a bit of a mess, but…just, very different.

The detective shook his head at the anomaly and shut down his computer. Watari had won this one, he could say that. With no cases to solve he felt…useless. It wasn't like he could get an ordinary job. Fake names and fake social security numbers were two different things. He could probably pull it off, but…heh, L, with a normal job?

He allowed himself to fall asleep chuckling about it.

- - -

The next morning already seemed to be shaping up to be a better one than yesterday's. Ah, no drums, no drill sergeant old men. Waking up with a demented teenager who slept as peacefully as an angel was a bit of a damper, but L wasn't about to let it ruin his day.

He had slept in his normal clothes, changing into similar attire after his bath the night before. Thankfully Beyond had as well, so as to eliminate the hassle of dressing constantly. The boy was already up when L's eyes opened and he was holding something in his hand. Well, two things. A mirror…and an eyeliner pencil. Disturbing.

_Teenagers…_L muttered. Okay, so demented teenager that wore eyeliner aside, he wasn't going to let anything dampen his day. He patiently waited for him to be done before heading down to the lower floors of the complex.

The younger boys were already in the kitchen. Mello seemed to be trying to head the breakfast effort. "Matt, hand me two eggs!" He shouted out. He and the redhead were standing on chairs, Mello at the stove and Matt beside the fridge. Near had smartly said screw it to Mello's cooking methods and decided to get a bowl of cereal. But again, his small fingers couldn't handle the spoon properly and thus there were Cheerios and milk all over the table.

"Mello, move," L said, picking up the boy and setting him on the floor. He pushed the chair aside and took the frying pan off the stove. Was this supposed to be an over-easy egg? He opened the trash can and chucked the concoction in there. _Not anymore._

Grabbing two more from the carton, he cracked them on the edge of the stove and carefully put them in the frying pan on top of each other. After turning the heat down lower, he gently folded one end of the egg over the other, trapping the yolks inside.

Mello narrowed his eyes at him. "So you mean to tell me that you know next to nothing about cleaning, a basic human thing, yet you can cook. Bullshit."

Light just happened to be entering the kitchen at that moment and heard him. As though it were a normal reaction, his hand reached out and swiftly popped him in the mouth. "You're going to learn to control that language problem you have," he said to the boy. To L he asked, "So, what's to grub on?"

Like the last time, Mello's hand shot to his mouth and his eyes welled with tears. Being too proud to cry in front of everyone he whipped around and ran out of the room. "Cry baby," Matt coughed, sitting down at the table.

Not too soon later, L had made a decent breakfast of eggs, sausage and toast. The detective could've sworn he knew nothing about cooking either. Guess he could be full of surprises. He set the dishes on the table, passed out plates and forks and sat (crouched) down in a chair himself.

"Matt, go find Mello," he told the redhead. Matt made a snide comment that sounded like "He'll probably just snot all over his food," but did as he was told. When he returned a moment later with the blonde, Mello's face was flushed, but his eyes appeared dried. And…he was limping slightly. Ah, L understood. No, Mello wasn't one for crying. He was one for tantrums. So, instead he'd thrown a hissy-fit somewhere and probably kicked a wall, stubbed his toe and that in turn had mellowed Mello out.

Yes, pun intended.

What was a huge amazement was the gathering in itself. Beyond and Light having a meal at the same table without a fight breaking out? Well…a meal here at the compound anyways. B seemed too entranced with Light's mother to really be considered a threat yesterday.

The conversation ranged from school (Light bragged on his grades, Beyond bragged about how many kids he terrified and Mello bragged about being number one at Wammy's…to which Matt nicely added that no, he wasn't. Near said nothing), to also talking about politics…a very touchy subject in the adult world. Beyond had nothing really to say on the matter and gracefully backed out of the heated discussion Light and L were having.

Everyone for the most part seemed to be enjoying themselves when L noticed that Near, who had been quiet the entire time, was still having trouble with his food. More Cheerios had gotten on the table than in his mouth and what was still in the bowl was soggy. With a sigh, he emptied it out filled it back up halfway with no milk.

In a quick demonstration, he tried to show him how to hold the spoon. "See, you rest the spoon on your middle finger, your index on top and use your thumb for support," he coached, even though he wouldn't need a spoon for the dry cereal. Still, Near couldn't do it. L sighed again. "Alright, up with you," he muttered, picking the boy up. Sitting down in his seat, he placed Near on his lap. As he continued to eat his own food (a constant display on how to hold utensils; also he too had some cereal instead of the breakfast he had cooked), the boy ditched the spoon in favor of his fingers and ate the Cheerios with his hands, every now and then accidently reaching into L's bowl.

Breakfast ended soon enough and L proudly displayed his skills from the day before and did the dishes. Beyond helpfully dried them and put them in the nearby cabinet. Light had to wonder if perhaps a new leaf was turning for the two. Either that, or this wasn't the real L and Beyond and he had to wonder where the hell the real two were at.

And felt extremely sorry for the person that would ever want to kidnap those two!

When everything was cleaned up (including Near's sticky fingers and face), Watari joined them in the large entrance of the complex. "Well now, I see you all are getting along and behaving! Good! Well L, since you're still out of work, I think it wouldn't kill you to spend some more time with the children. Light, you're free to go today," he added.

Light didn't need to be told twice! Without a moment's hesitation, he ran out of the building. L could've swore he heard the boy cackling as he left.

He on the other hand was now forced to play Duck Duck Goose. Watari, Matt, Mello and Near all sat in a circle as he himself walked around the outside edge of it. Tapping each person lightly on the head he muttered "Duck (annoying little ingrate), duck (reclusive little redhead, aren't you?), Duck (Tch, older than Old Man River), then he said 'goose' when he came to Near.

Of course Near couldn't catch L and somewhere in the back of the detective's mind, he knew it was wrong to have picked the boy in the first place. But he happened to be sitting in the spot next to the one that used to be L's so him sitting back down quicker was more assured with Near. He stared straight ahead at a wall and tried to ignore the disapproving look Watari was sending his way.

Near began his trip around the circle, lightly tapping everyone on the head and saying duck. It was about his fifth time around that everyone wondered if he even knew how to play the game!

"Pick a damn goose already!" Mello shouted.

Near halted, spun around and walked up to him. Rapping on his head with a hard knuckle, he said "Goose!" and tried to run off. Mello simply stuck his leg out in his way and the boy tripped. Three seconds later and his piercing wails filled the area.

"That's it, it's a crybaby fest today," Matt muttered and walked off. Mello stopped in front of Near and whispered in his ear "Can't hang with the big-dogs, stay your ass on the porch," before also leaving.

Watari and L glanced at each other to determine who would play father this time. When Watari started heading for the door, it became obvious who. "I would pick the boy up myself, but oh, my rheumatism has been bothering me lately," the old man said.

"You don't have rheumatism!" L accused. "Why does everyone make up some disease as an excuse?! You, Beyond, who's next?" But his rant for the most part fell on deaf ears. Or rather, no ears. Watari was gone.

L walked over to the sobbing boy and picked him up. He wasn't quite sure how this worked, but he tried to rock him in his arms. Note to self: stooped position and rocking children do not mix.

But it did seem to be working. Near was now quiet, perhaps on his way to falling asleep. L had to smile to himself. Another tally of success.

In the final moments before he drifted off, Near also smiled to himself. All's well that ends well. _His _plan was also a success.

L was his.

* * *

Possessive Near? Oh my! ^_^


	22. Of Devils and Demons

Our little Lawliet's birthday was yesterday, folks! I know nearly half of you probably read some story or another pertaining to that, lol! Well, this chapter has nothing to do with his special day, but happy belated birthday L! Okay, do enjoy, ^_^

* * *

**Of Devils and Demons**

The moment Light was out of sight of the compound, he whipped out his cell phone. He texted a simple message then shut it off: "Corner of 4th and Main. ---K".

He himself slipped into a booth at the appropriate location. It was a coffee shop, the same one he had taken L to the day he beat him at that tennis game. Ah, that was a lovely day indeed…minus being grilled about being Kira, his father having a heart attack, and Ryuk deciding later that night to shout random things in his ear as he tried to sleep.

Speaking of the shinigami…what with him still being under heavy surveillance, there had been no time for the two to speak. He was tucked off in a remote corner of the shop now, so no one would notice if Light whispered to him.

"So, you're meeting Mikami here, huh?" The shinigami said. "Heh, nice place. Can you buy me an apple?"

"They don't sell apples here, Ryuk," Light sighed, checking his watch.

"Well, that's not good. You've not given me any in such a long time, Light. Do you really want to see me go through my withdrawal stages again?"

"I really couldn't care," was the reply.

"Oh yeah?" At that moment, a waitress came by to take Light's order. He asked for only a cup of coffee. As she turned around to leave, her skirt suddenly flew up. She screamed, turned back to Light, slapped him hard across the face and then stomped off.

"That wasn't even me!" Light tried to yell after her, but she wasn't listening.

"So, how 'bout that apple?" Ryuk said smugly.

The boy groaned. "Fine," he snarled.

"Nice!"

Ten minutes later, after he'd hunted down a store that sold apples (making sure to get plenty so the shinigami would leave him alone), he went back into the café. In his previous spot was a head of long black hair. For a moment, Light feared it might be L. He wouldn't put it past the detective to have somehow hunted him down. But then he remembered that Mikami's hair was somewhat like his and relaxed.

He had taken off his jacket and sat down before he'd looked up at his guest. And about had a heart attack himself.

"What the hell?!"

"Hiya, Light," Beyond smiled. "L let me off the cuffs finally. Said I had been such a good boy and all. So, I decided to come hang out with you." His smile grew wider. "And you have such a pretty little girlfriend…or rather, _ex-_girlfriend. Such beautiful eyes…very unique as well. Why, I bet with one look she could tell you everything about you!"

Light blinked almost stupidly at him. There was no mistaking the hint. Beyond knew Misa had the shinigami eyes. But how? Did he have them as well? And if so…did that mean Beyond had a Death Note?!

"Oh, wow," Ryuk muttered appreciatively. "So that means you can see me?" he asked.

"Since day one," Beyond said. "I'm just good at keeping my mouth shut. Let me in on your little plan and I can keep it shut longer."

Light was about to reply when two more people approached them. One was the rightful guest, Mikami, and the other…was Misa.

"Hi, sweetie! I mean…um, Light," the girl said. "I usually come here for a strawberry sundae and happened to run into Teru on the way in. He said he was meeting someone else too and when I looked back here, I noticed…him," she added quietly, nodding to Ryuk.

Then she looked over and saw Beyond. "Ahh! Ryuzaki! Oh, Light, no! I have my Death Note; I'll kill him right now!"

"No, Misa…you…can't," Light told her in a very disappointed voice. He moved over so she could sit next to him. Mikami cautiously took a spot beside Beyond. "Alright, I see that I have no choice but to include you in this too, B." _Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck! _

Things couldn't have gotten worse for him. This was just supposed to be a quick update for Mikami about the over-abundant killings, and maybe an eventual meeting with Misa about the same thing, and a day of Ryuzaki-free relaxation. Now Beyond had gotten on board and the boy was hell before the presence of shinigami and such.

"Hmm…ridding the world of its criminals," the teenager mused once Light had finished explaining his plan. "That sounds…stupid."

Everyone blanched. "R-really?" Light asked.

Beyond shrugged. "You're trying once again to be the over-achiever, going not for the gold, but the platinum, and making sure everyone knows about it. No offense, but I really despise people like you. Not to mention, if the world is only full of goody-goodies, then where does that leave me? Also, without criminals, there's no need for police officers. Without police officers, that means millions are going to be jobless, creating an economic domino effect all across the world. Your father might not exactly be on the police force anymore, but that's still his main line of work, meaning even your own family would be hit by the wave of such a recession. So, keep your little world-domination thing for yourself."

Holy crap, this was too good to be true! The only words Light had registered were the ones that said that B wanted nothing to do with his idea.

"In turn though…" here his eyes landed on Misa. "I want her."

Misa gagged. "Eew! No way! You're all creepy and stuff, just like Ryuzaki! You're probably some relative of his or something, aren't you?"

Beyond smirked, then pulled his legs up in his chair, sitting like L. Boring deep into her face with a thumb against his mouth, he said, "Whether I am or not isn't the issue. I like you, Misa. I like you a lot. And the crimson eyes that only I can see…" he trailed off for a moment as he took in a shuddering breath. "…are like two strawberries that I can't wait to devour."

_That didn't even make sense! _Light thought. At least Misa was playing hard to get. She quirked an eyebrow at him, huffed, and then turned away.

"Er, right, if we can get back to the matter at hand…?" the brunette said. "You two were doing way too much last night. Misa, please learn to control your emotions. And Mikami…why did you kill so many people?"

The man stared at him rapturously. "God, I was doing your will. I was ridding the world of such vile creatures and purifying the streets, so that you may one day look upon us and see nothing but good, honest people."

Light blinked for a moment. "Mikami, were you ever a member of the Church of Scientology?" He had to know.

"Well, actually, I was," he said. "But, I got tired of the mandatory tithes and being forced to buy so many books and pamphlets. Um, why do you ask?"

"Oh nothing, nothing." _Ron L. Hubbard, you can't win them all. _ "Anyways, in short, watch your actions, guys. Yes, you're my hands for right now since I'm being scrutinized so closely, but do nothing rash. And—Ryuk, did you just ask Rem for her phone number?! She's a shinigami!"

Both gods of death whipped around, eyes wide with that classic "Oh snaps!" look. "Uuh…I figured it was worth a try," Ryuk said.

_What the hell is today, Valentine's Day?! _Light shook his head in his hands. "Whatever, it's still disturbing. Alright, I believe we're finished here. You guys can go.

When he said this, he saw Ryuk flying after Rem when Misa got up. "Not you!" Light shouted at him. The shinigami pulled up short and watched with what looked like pained eyes as he saw the other one leave.

Mikami was still at the table, also eyeing something: Light's half-eaten muffin.

"Mik…please tell me you really don't want that," Light said to him.

Mikami looked up at him with wide, pleading eyes.

_Oh my fucking god, that's nasty! _ Light couldn't even stay and watch. With a sad shake of his head, he walked away from the table. Immediately, the man fell upon his food, smacking with delight, ecstasy prevalent on his face.

Today had probably been the best day of his life. Not only had he dined with God, but was eating the very food that his lord's mouth had touched!

To him, he was tasting heaven.

* * *

I know this chapter had quite some twists. But after replying to a review, it suddenly hit me that I miraculously forgot to mention that Beyond was chained to L in the last chapter. In fact, I've done that several times and at the last minute I'll throw in a word or two about it. This previous time was it for me…Beyond and L needed to be released. So, enjoy them as separate entities now, lol! I'll strive to make the next chapter Matt's. Alright, please review!


	23. Final Fantasy

Sorry for the late update folks, my muse wasn't so much the issue as was my attention span…kinda been indulging in the silliest of things…online avatars, lol! I even managed to drag a friend of mine into is and now, well…we're pretty much some cosplaying fools! Heh, I'm Near, Roxas and Axel (last two are from Kingdom Hearts). Anywho, enough of that. This chapter isn't all Matt's since there really isn't much to Matt's personality that I can fully work with, especially at this age. But he has much more screen time than he's had in the past. With that said, read it, like it, love it, and review it!

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**Final Fantasy**

Out of sheer boredom (and because they were supposedly best friends), Matt found himself wandering down the hallways until he reached Mello's room. Without a cursory knock, he opened the door and entered.

What he saw would've made him laugh if Mello wasn't concentrating so hard.

The blonde was looking at a plant in the room with a fierce glare, focused solely on the object and nothing else. He didn't even flinch or turn around when Matt entered.

_He's gonna pop a blood vessel straining his eyes like that, _Matt mused, chucking to himself. Well, if it happened, who was he to miss out on a chance to see some blood and gore? _Oh no…did that sound Beyond-ish?! _He then sighed. Yes, Beyond was seriously rubbing off on them.

He quietly stood back a ways and off to the side so as to have a good view of the event. Mello had begun to make strange faces at the plant, squinting his eyes, baring his teeth, scrunching his face up, all to achieve…nothing.

"Okay, you've been staring at that plant for ten minutes straight," Matt said, taking out a game system from his pocket. "Dare I ask what the heck you're doing?"

"_Tch_, like you'd understand," Mello huffed, flopping down on his bed.

"I'm third at Wammy's. Try me."

Mello looked over at him, and then gave a sarcastic chuckle. "Alright, but I doubt you'll believe me. Some kid at the park yesterday showed me something called the Chaos Theory and—"

"Bullshit," Matt interjected.

"See, toldja you wouldn't believe me!"

"—but continue," Matt went on, smirking.

Mello cast a half-discreet glance at a pillow and considered chucking it at him. "The Chaos Theory allows a person to effect the events in time by offsetting them with another event. For example, I did "she loves me, she loves me not" on a flower from another plant in here. That means that I believe this plant should be greatly affected, since they are within the same vicinity."

Matt blinked. "Okay, you've effing lost it." With that, he turned his full attention to the video game. Mello shook his head, then rolled over on the bed with a book in his hands.

A moment later, a loud crash pulled them out from what they were doing. The plant on the dresser had fallen off.

Matt's eyes slowly rose to meet Mello's. No way…this had to be a coincidence! This was just too far-fetched to be true.

Mello slipped off the bed and quietly walked over to the pile of dirt and broken glass. "It's true…it's really, really true…" he murmured.

Matt watched him as he knelt down and felt the dirt, as though it would help confirm what had just happened. He himself figured it wouldn't hurt to try an experiment of his own. _Nine times out of ten, nothing's going to happen, but what the hell. I'll indulge in his little 'theory'. _

He walked over to a lamp, grabbed it, and chucked it to the floor.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Mello screamed at him.

"I dunno. You ripped up a flower and a whole plant broke. Figured if I did something with this lamp, something else might happen."

"That's not how it works!" Mello said, balling his fists up. "You can't just go around recklessly destroying things! Nothing's going to come of it but—"

Suddenly, all the lights in the room flickered and died. Out in the hall, he heard one of the members of the task force call out, "I think we're having some power issues here."

Matt had only destroyed a lamp in Mello's room. In turn, the entire building had lost power.

"Holy frickin' moley!" Matt said, getting excited. "Dude, you never told me about all of this! How long were you planning on holding out on me?"

"Matt…we can alter time! But…how are you able to do it?! I actually had to train to learn how to do this!"

Matt shrugged. "I guess it's not as much of a secret as you thought. Let's see what else we can do!"

This time, it was Mello who was the apprehensive one. "I don't know…I mean, have you ever thought what the future holds? Maybe we're in for something good, but we're about to ruin it if we keep screwing around."

His friend gave him a dull stare. "Mels, for once I'm not on your back talking about how much this or that isn't a good idea. Please, don't ruin this moment." He went out into the hallway with the blonde trailing after him. At the first bathroom he came across, he turned on both the shower and the sink, then flushed the toilet.

"What the hell was that supposed to do?" Mello asked.

"Don't know. We'll find out though."

Not long after, thunder could be heard in the distance. It had been perfectly clear outside, though, last time they checked.

Both of them froze in absolute shock. "My goodness…these powers." Matt whispered, staring at his hands in amazement. "I rule this planet…I…I WILL be the god of a new world!"

He laughed cruelly before tearing down the hall in a random direction. He broke everything in his path, turned on every faucet, ripped up seemingly insignificant things like paper.

"That's it!" Mello shouted. "This was all my idea! Why should you rule the world? You wouldn't have even known how to do it if it wasn't for me! The world shall be under _my _command!" They were in the kitchen now, breaking dishes.

"Never!" Matt said back. "I will recreate a place where there is no first, second, or third in anything! _I_ will be first at everything!!" He snatched up the toaster and viciously threw it to the floor.

Suddenly, they felt the ground shake. Matt smirked. "I did that. The world trembles at my power!"

"To hell they do!" Mello said. "My powers are more supreme than yours! You might've gotten lucky with controlling the weather but the heavens and the earth belong to me!" He pulled open the fridge and began pushing everything to the floor. Outside, the elements grew worse and worse.

Matt snarled at him. In the corner of the room, he spotted a cane that Watari would use every great now and then. He laughed joyfully. "This will be my instrument for now. Let's see what I can accomplish with this." He tore out of the room, brandishing his new weapon.

"Oh, no you don't!" Mello grabbed the broom and went after him. "I will be the one to change the world! Me! I am –"

At the same time, Matt also said, "I am –"

Then both: "Justice!"

They began to spread their destruction over the entire first floor for starters. The main computers were fully damaged, chairs kicked aside, and the glass table that L liked to eat at was smashed to bits. When they were finished each panted from the exertion, staring daggers at the other.

As though deciding as one, they dropped the weapons and ran outside to see what all had changed.

Everything.

The sky was a mixture of black and a deep purple, the color of a violent storm. Sheets of rain poured down, but did nothing to drench the fires that had mysteriously started in several buildings. Quite a few structures were no longer standing.

"What…in the world…" Matt said, walking forward in a daze. This wasn't right. This wasn't the world he'd envisioned!

"Ya know, you reap what you sow," a voice said. Matt and Mello whipped around to see Near standing at the entrance of the compound. Slowly, he climbed down the steps one at a time so as not to fall and hurt himself.

"What do you know?" Mello said. "You're just a stupid crybaby!"

Near shrugged, twirling his hair. "Maybe. But this stupid crybaby at least knows the meaning of cause and effect. Did you really think that by destroying everything, something good was going to come of all of it?" He laughed derisively. "Please tell me not. If all you do is cause mayhem, then mayhem is what you're going to get. You two warred with each other, so now the lands are ravaged by war. You threw away perfectly good food, so now the people are famished. Making any sense now?"

"Whatever," Mello huffed, and stomped away back inside.

Matt hung back. "Sooo…exactly how would I change things?" he asked the boy.

Near picked up a rock and tried to skip it across the ground. It did so twice, then came to a stop only five feet away. He frowned, and then turned his attention back to Matt. "Do the opposite of destruction. Rebuild, make peace, and be charitable. Find another way to get your point across rather than just going on a berserk spree of violence. Oh, and one other thing," he added.

"What's that?"

Near suddenly smiled. "Wake up, Matty."

He sat up abruptly, huffing and covered in sweat. Matt looked around him. How had he gotten in his room? Then everything that had happened came back to him. He rushed to the window and looked out. The sky indeed was clouding, but looked nothing close to what it had…in his dream.

_So it _was _just a dream? _he thought. Then something occurred to him. He tore out of his room and down the hall. Again without knocking, he burst into Mello's room. The blonde was on his bed, doing a Sudoku puzzle.

Not caring how it looked, Matt ran up to him and shook him by the shoulders. "Don't stare at the plants!" He screamed. "Leave them alone! Nothing good will come of it!"

Mello grabbed his hands. "What the hell has gotten into you?! What plants? Why would I stare at some boring shrubs?"

Matt slowly released him. Of course Mello wouldn't know what he meant. It was only a dream after all. "Oh. Yeah…you're right…"

"You know, I really think you might want to lay off the video games…which one was it this time, Mario or Zelda?"

"Um…nothing…" Matt muttered. He shuffled out the room in a daze and went down the stairs to the first floor. Everything there was fine now as well. On a couch in the corner, Near sat with a coloring book in his lap.

Matt walked up to him. "Er, Near?"

The boy paused for a moment to look up. "Yeah, Matt?"

"…thanks." He walked away before he could hear the reply.

Near went back to his picture, but smiled to himself. "You're welcome."

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Probably wasn't what you were expecting, huh? Well, I hope you still enjoyed it, ^_^ Now, time to go back to that 'cosplay'…come along, Riku and Sora! xD!


	24. Surprise and Lies

I don't think it took me too long to update this time, ^_^ Ahh, we're finally getting down to the epic conclusion of Laments! Also, since the chances of me updating sometime before Christmas is phenomenally low, merry early Christmas! Okay, go and read it, like it, love it and please review it!

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**Surprise and Lies**

Soichiro Yagami finally made it back to headquarters shortly before ten that morning. The night before had been a pleasant one, but he couldn't understand for the life of him why Sayu refused to shut off her music player all night long and into the morning. Didn't he get her one of those…iCapsule thingies or whatever? Ugh, he couldn't get any sleep with that thing on.

With that being the case, he sluggishly dragged his body through the door. The front room had Mogi and Ide at the computers. Aizawa was on a couch scribbling something down and Matsuda…was playing Bejeweled on his cellphone. A seemingly typical setting for the office.

What Soichiro wasn't expecting was for the door to the first floor closet to suddenly give a loud _bang. _It sounded as if something heavy had fallen on the other side. He couldn't imagine Ryuzaki having shoved much of anything in there, considering the man seemed quite a light packer, judging by the fact that he wore the same style of attire every day and the only technology he really used was his computer or a TV.

Regardless, he figured it'd be polite to at least try to straighten up whatever had fallen so that the next person who opened it wasn't bombarded with a face full of debris. He quickly walked over to the door, but carefully pulled it open so that he wasn't the first victim to whatever mystery lay inside.

It was when he had the door about halfway that he realized that he indeed was in no danger and thus threw it open.

There lay L, bound and gagged to an office chair. The chair was on its side, which explained the bang. The man himself seemed almost impassive—were it not for the deeply narrowed eyes that spelled pure aggravation and perhaps embarrassment at being found in such a state.

"Ryu…zaki. What happened?" Soichiro asked the detective.

L scowled at him and narrowed his eyes further, also tipping his head slightly to the side. The message was clear: "I'm bound and gagged, dumbass, how the hell do you expect me to answer that?!"

"Oh, right," the older man said, and knelt down to untie him. Actually, L wasn't tied, but rather had the chain from the handcuffs he and Beyond had shared wrapped around him several times, then secured not only what had been his free wrist, but to the back of the chair as well. He had been tied while sitting in his customary sitting position except with his arms behind him.

Finding that there was no way to properly free him while in the tiny closet, Soichiro wheeled L out into the main room. Everyone ogled him like the newest display at the museum and L actually felt himself die a little inside.

The rest of the task force came up to them with various instruments in hopes of getting the cuffs off. Aizawa presented a metal coat hanger. It didn't work. Mogi tried a bobby pin. That might've worked on a door, but not industrialized handcuffs. Ide, with his dislike for the man, didn't even attempt to help him, but acted like he wasn't aware of the situation by loudly shuffling papers around.

Matsuda had left the room for a moment, but suddenly came back, looking quite proud of himself. In his hands was a chain saw.

"I found this upstairs in the hallway!" He beamed. "Don't worry, Ryuzaki, I'll have you out in a jiff!"

He slowly walked towards L, pulling the string to crank the blade. L's eyes double in size and he began wriggling and screaming as loud as his muffled voice would let him. The chair tipped over again and he crashed painfully on his side for the second time, but that was the least of his worries. He used what part of his body that was on the floor to attempt to crawl away from Matsuda, who was still advancing.

"I don't think that's such a great idea, Matsuda," Soichiro said, grabbing the man's hand to halt him.

"Yeah, but nothing else worked," the younger man said.

"Perhaps not, but I don't think a chain saw is the way to go."

Matsuda looked down at his blade, then looked over to the crawling L, who was very slowly still trying to inch away while quietly whimpering. He looked back down at the blade, sighed, and turned it off. For once, he thought he was finally going to be of some use.

Soichiro knelt down to the detective again and this time removed the cloth that was wrapped around his mouth so that he could speak. And the first thing L said was:

"Matsuda, what in the _hell _is wrong with you?!"

"I-I'm sorry L! I was just trying—"

"To kill me!" L interrupted.

"No! I swear! I wanted to help you—"

"Die!"

"That's not what I'm trying to say! Listen, Ryuzaki, I only want you—"

"Dead!" The man filled in yet again.

Matsuda opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but instead slumped away, looking very off-put about the situation.

Watari entered the room, a tiny screwdriver in hand. He twisted it around for a bit inside one of the locks in the handcuffs until a quiet click was heard. L pulled his right wrist around from behind him and undid the other cuff on his own. He stood up on wobbly legs, stretching for a bit (probably the only time anyone had ever seen him stand fully upright), and then took up his usual slouching stance.

"I suppose it might be silly to ask, but would any of you have seen Beyond?" he asked them. The frown on his face hadn't disappeared and so he looked quite disdainfully at the others. The situation had been a major blow to his pride.

Everyone shook their heads. L put a thumb to his lip in thought, half turning his head to the side. After a moment, he asked, "Where's Light?"

Immediately, Soichiro went on the defense. "What does this have to do with my son?"

"Nothing. Just an observation. I'm quite sure he wouldn't have missed today's little scene for anything and yet, he wasn't here." He paused for a moment to rub his sore wrists before adding, "Beyond has escaped."

The color drained out of everyone's faces.

"Further more, I'm not sure if he went outside or is still hiding within the building," L told them. He shook his head regretfully. "I let my guard down for a moment and he took advantage of it. He picked the lock on the cuffs with a small knife blade, handcuffed me to my chair and very nicely threw me in the closet. But if nothing else, I suppose we should fear the most for Yagami junior."

Soichiro stiffened. "Dear gods…what should we do?"

L shrugged. "Too late to do anything now."

"L!" the man yelled.

"Yes?"

"No, I mean you have to have a better plan than that! This is my son, we're talking about here!"

"Yes, I'm quite aware of that. Which is exactly why I said it's too late. Light's not here nor do we know where he's at. All we can do is wait for him to come back."

"But what if Beyond reached him?" Soichiro asked.

L actually gave a derisive laugh. "On that note, it's _really _too late! We'll just have to wait for one of them to come back. I'm quite sure they will eventually."

The next hour was pure hell for them. As they tried to keep busy, everyone's minds kept wondering just what _if _Beyond had gotten ahold of Light? Those two were mortal enemies…there was no way blood would not be shed if they crossed each other without interference. The task force had to all but chain Soichiro to a chair to keep him from charging off on a manhunt for the teens (with probable intents to kill Beyond).

The clock ticked by loudly in the deafening silence. The blades from the air conditioning system whirled loudly and about halfway through the hour, Aizawa stood up, screamed "I can't take this anymore!!!!" pushed himself roughly away from the desk and then ran upstairs. L switched the monitors over to watch him as he ran to his room, checking to make sure no one else was around before slamming and locking the door.

"Huh. Paranoia of Beyond?" L mused. "I hope he knows that the boy could very well be in his room."

The other task force members blanched, then ran to each other and formed a human version of a wagon circle, everyone facing outwards on all directions to keep an eye out. Yes, even Ide finally took part in this.

L simply went about slurping his moist coffee sugar (more sugar than coffee).

Around one that afternoon, the security alarm at the compound went off, announcing a presence on the premises. There Light stood, casually punching in his pin number, with Beyond beside him. Light was empty handed, but Beyond had a stack of new manga under his arm.

The moment they were fully inside, Soichiro broke free from the group and ran towards them. "Light!!!" he shouted out. He snagged his son into a hug, pulling him away from the other teenager and back onto the 'safe side' of the room. "Are you alright? Are you hurt? Do I need to arrest him?!"

"Father, I'm fine," Light said, wriggling free of the death grip. "L let him go, and somehow he found me at the coffee shop I go to. We just chatted."

L's eyes slowly roamed over to B's. He quirked an eyebrow that said, "Let you go? Is that the lie you told?"

Beyond tilted his head and with closed eyes, gave a cheesy smile. "Okay, so the gigs up, Light," he told the boy. "I broke free. I'm an escaped convict! A loony on the lam! They're coming to take me away, ha ha!" His current expression read that indeed he should've been in a funny farm.

"How dare you stalk my son, you little—" Soichiro yelled, but Light pulled him back. He was still a police officer, and his father being put in jail would do nothing to pay the bills. And he himself would be damned if he got a job when his mother was quite capable of working too!

L stood up from his seat, walking a bit closer. "Well, isn't this quite the predicament? Beyond, you managed to break free and have an enjoyable time out, judging by your purchases. You're still a hazardous threat and yet the handcuffs are now useless for you." He sighed. "Watari, could you bring down that thing I told you to get?"

"Yes, Ryuzaki," the man said and walked away upstairs. He came back a moment later with a large box in his hands.

"B, would you be complacent and come here?" L asked. Beyond grinned at him, and actually walked closer.

"Curiosity killed the man," he said. Everyone gave him a horrified look at the butchered phrase. But he stepped up next to L, who was peeling back the tape on the box. When it was finally open, he dug into it and came back up with…a white cloth of some sort.

Beyond knew what it was and began to chuckle gleefully. "Thanks, L! I always wanted one of these!" He looked sincere about it too.

L ignored him and spun him around, wrapping the white cloth around him. It had multiple buckles on the back part that held the entire thing in place. When he was finished, B's upper half was wrapped up like a butterfly in a cocoon.

The children took that time to make an appearance. "Wow, B…they finally had you committed, eh?" Mello snickered. Beyond only grinned back. _Holy crap, he's happy about it!! _

"Okay, what did we miss?" Matt asked. "One second he's chained to L, next moment he's…in a straight jacket. Wait, they still use those?!"

"In some cases, yes," Near replied. "Although such a device was more popular in the mid 20th century."

"So, _are _you putting him in a hospital?" Soichiro asked hopefully.

"Mm, still deciding," L said. His phone began ringing though, and he turned away from the others to answer it. Beyond stiffly walked over to the chair he had been occupying and sat down, humming happily to himself as he rocked back and forth, staring at a far wall.

L snapped his phone shut and returned his attention to the others. "That was Roger. He said he 'lost his head' after the last stunt Mello and Beyond had pulled, and handled things improperly by sending them to me. He said he realizes that I do have enough responsibilities on my own and do not need to be burdened with more. In short, he's requesting your arrival back in Winchester immediately."

There was a moment of silence before everyone began babbling at once.

"Oh, _hell _to the no!" Mello seethed

"The old fart's just going to send us right back!" Matt said.

"I actually don't stick out as a human sheep with all the crazy hairdo's these Japanese kids have!" Near whimpered.

"Can I keep the jacket as a souvenir?" Beyond asked.

"I negotiated with him on the matter," L told them. "I honestly do need fewer distractions if I'm going to get my work done, but we decided that a week's visit every summer would be fine."

Mello raised his hand. "Uh, quick question. So if he hadn't called and said he wanted us back, what would you have done with us?"

The detective looked at him with serious eyes. "Sent you to the nearest orphanage."

"You bastard!!! You'd treat your successors like that?!"

L shrugged. "Not like Wammy's can help you become smarter exactly. Your mind has its limits and when they're reached, they're reached, whether there or anywhere else. You don't need Wammy's to become L."

"Still pretty fucked up," Mello whispered quietly to himself.

"Well, enjoy your last day here," their mentor said. "Tomorrow, you guys are heading back." With that, he walked back over to the computers. Just as he was passing B though, the boy stuck out a foot and tripped him.

Beyond giggled. "Damn, that felt good!"

A very annoyed L grabbed one of his legs roughly and dragged him over to the computers as well.

_One more day…just one more day, _he told himself. But with that thought suddenly came a weird stab in his chest, a feeling he hadn't ever felt before. He dismissed it for the moment, and decided to focus his mind on other tasks. Like perhaps chaining Beyond's legs so he wouldn't kick out at anyone else. And a gag wouldn't be such a bad idea either…

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Wow, it wasn't until I started adding this author note that I realized how long this chapter was! Seven pages on Microsoft Word…take that, to all of you who say my chapters are short!! ^_^ (no, I'm actually happy that you encourage me to write more.) Anywho, let me not give one of my famous rambles here. As always, please review!


	25. Boys Just Wanna Have Fun

Oh wow, I didn't know that some of the DN characters' birthdays had passed this month! A huge apology to Mello! The last chapter I updated was on December 13th, which was his birthday! So, happy birthday Mello! And…yeah, most of you hate her, but Christmas was Misa's birthday as well, so a happy birthday to the annoying chika too! Matsuda's was on the 14th…and Raye Penber's is coming up on the 31st. So, happy birthday to all of them! And I hope all of you had a merry Christmas as well!

This is it. The last one. And now, I'm strangely fighting back tears! Damnit, it's just fanfiction! For one final time, read it…like it…love it…and review it. I'm going to go get a Kleenex now…

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Boys Just Wanna Have Fun**

Sometime after the chaotic mess where L was stuck in the closet (no, that's not a reference to his sexuality!), he uncuffed Beyond and kicked the chair he had been sitting in away from him and told the boy, "You have one last day here and you already spent most of today a free man. You might as well finish off your time free as well." Beyond had hobbled up from his seat, gave a stiff bow to the detective, and then shuffled quietly out the room and up the stairs.

Upon reaching the third floor, he walked up to one of the rooms and kicked it until Matt opened it up.

"What the hell do you want?" He muttered.

"Don't be like that, Matty," Beyond said in a normal voice for once. Not _his _normal voice (with which he was usually cackling like a hyena while grinning like a Cheshire cat), but a tone of voice that hopefully wouldn't still scare off the boy. "Let me in." He didn't ask it and without an invitation, he pushed past him and into the room.

Mello and Near were sitting on the floor, a deck of cards on the carpet and each had a hand. A fan of cards in an empty spot suggested that that's where Matt had been sitting. B sat next to the spot, kneeling quite gracefully for having his hands still tied up.

The other three tried to ignore him as they went about their game of Go Fish. Beyond looked over to Near's hand and whispered, "Mello has the three you're needing."

"I heard that, damnit!" Mello shouted at him.

Near looked over at him with a raised eyebrow. "So…can I get that three?"

Mello narrowed his eyes with a fierce glare. "You didn't just fix your mouth to ask that."

Near shrugged. "It'd be rude to not take such excellent advice."

"I know, huh?" Matt said. "I too have a three. Hand it over, Near."

Now Near looked pissed! "You know what? Screw this game." He put his hand back on top of the deck and backed out of the circle. With a heavy sigh, Mello and Matt followed suit. Beyond was doing a poor job at hiding his glee.

"Alright, so what brings you here, unless it's for more torment and mayhem?" Mello asked. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a chocolate bar, taking a vicious bite.

Matt suddenly blinked at him. "Holy crap, Mello! I thought you were cured of your chocolate addiction! You've not eaten any since you've been here!"

"Naw, just watching my figure while on summer break. Can't let the ladies see my choco-holic side."

The room fell silent for a moment, until Beyond said, "It must be lonely up on that pedestal."

"Shut up, B, you're one to talk about isolated pedestals," Mello told him. "And answer the question. Why are you here?"

"Can't I visit my dearest friends without having a specific reason?"

"NO!" Everyone shouted at him at the same time.

"Yeesh! Alright, alright. Don't get your diapers in a wad." Curling into himself, to make his body smaller, he deftly shrugged out of the straight jacket. He then reached into his own pocket and revealed one of the last packs of strawberry jam that he had left from the bakery. "I'm not going back to Wammy's," he said calmly, sucking on the jam.

Matt chuckled. "Alright, and how do you plan to keep yourself here?"

"Well, running away would be the obvious choice. But L knows how to hunt people down like dogs so that's pretty much out. So I thought of something else, using something that he's so familiar with and yet can so easily be turned against him."

"Uh-huh…and that would be?" The redhead prodded him.

"The internet."

"Sounds like suicide if you ask me," Near said.

"Yes…and it would be risky. But sometime tonight, L has to schedule our flights. That's when we hack the computer and delete the tickets. Oh, and there's usually no refunds on these things, so L's about to be assed-out of his money."

Mello raised his hand, but spoke before being called on. "Uh, yeah, genius, just one thing. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to know that he's going to figure out it was us. Wait, correction, _you. _No one else has motive to delete the plane tickets. No one on the task force wants us around, that's for sure."

Beyond exchanged the dried jam packet for another one. "But of course he'll know it was us. Who cares if he does? Fact of the matter is, the tickets will be deleted and our departure will be postponed for another day."

This time, Near raised his hand. "Hate to burst your bubble, but you are aware that you can buy tickets right at the counter, without scheduling it, right? You pay more, but L's no stranger to big bucks. You seem to forget where we're staying at the moment."

"Yes, I thought about that…which brings me to the last solution. We blow up the plane."

Each said a different line, but the gist of the boys' reactions was, "Are you fucking crazy?!"

"Why yes, yes I am. Thanks for noticing," Beyond said with his trademark grin.

"That's not funny!" Matt shouted. "That's…that's beyond a federal offense. That's like, an attack on the country. Then when they find out we're from Britain—"

"Correction, I'm from America," Beyond said.

Matt ignored him. "—They're going to think this was some sort of staged event by England! Or rather, people will start to frown upon England and wonder just how in the hell did they get wrapped up in this terrorist thing…"

Mello slapped him on the back to end his rambling. "No they won't, and regardless, they especially won't because Beyond's not gonna do it."

B held up his hands. "Alright, you got me."

"See?" Mello told his friend, rubbing his back from the sting of the slap.

"Doesn't mean I can't kill L though," the teenager said.

This time, everyone simply took several large steps back from him.

"Joking, just joking!" The boy laughed. "But seriously. I could. I mean, I had the perfect opportunity to today. But he and Light are too much fun to mess with. Dead corpses just aren't filled with the same…_vitality._"

"Beyond, you're never going to get a girlfriend like that, man," Mello told him. "Least of all, any girl like Misa Amane."

B gave a sigh like he was love-sick. "Yes, the ambrosia I so desperately need refuses to be mine. And alas, I must leave her. But have heart, my dear, for I shall return another day. Promise that you will wait for me, for the day when my heart will eternally be yours."

This time, it was Matt who gave a frustrated cry. "What's with all the gay poetry going around?! First Light, now you! That's why you like him so much! You two are just alike!"

Near quietly stood up and headed for the door. "I'm going to take my leave now because this conversation is one line away from becoming epically disturbing."

"Yeah, I'm right behind you," Matt huffed, getting up too.

Near paused for a moment. "See, that's exactly what I'm talking about," he muttered before slipping out the room.

Beyond also got up, collecting his empty packets and the straight jacket. He shrugged the latter back over his body, then gave a simple nod to Mello. "Good day, my good sir." Finally, he too left.

In his now empty room, Mello flopped down on his bed. With a sigh, he said, "It's hard to believe that this is really Wammy's student body. And I'm part of it!"

- - -

The drive to the airport was a solemn affair for the boys. L had woken them up at seven and after a dismal breakfast, they had loaded their belongings into the back of the spacious vehicle Watari had mysteriously produced. With half-hearted waves, they said good-bye to the others while L and the elderly man climbed into the vehicle with them and drove off.

That's how the children saw it.

The task force thought that they had died and gone to heaven!

"YEAH! No more Beyond Birthday!!" Matsuda cheered. For once, the chief didn't chastise him for his exuberance.

"I must admit, a few times I thought that I might be going to jail for murder when it came to that one," he said sheepishly. "He just has a way of being _so annoying_!"

"Forget that, the little pale one gave me the creeps," Ide said, shuddering as he thought of Near. "Too quiet. At least with Mello's screaming, you knew what he was thinking. I don't like that quiet scheming stuff."

From somewhere, Aizawa produced a bottle of wine and began passing around plastic cups of it. Even Light received one. "To freedom!" Aizawa said.

"To freedom!" The others cheered and toasted one another.

Thus the task force became intoxicated on the children's departure.

- - -

A jet screamed overhead and the group paused to watch it. They had reached the airport and all around them, the noise of people talking, planes starting and the scratching of luggage tires on concrete filled the air. Watari helped the younger ones grab their baggage out of the trunk and soon they too joined the cacophony of airport life.

As soon as they stepped through the double-doors, the ticket counter was visible. L headed straight for them, and behind him, the others followed. Not because they were ready to go, but this was inevitable. Beyond hadn't even tried to sabotage the tickets since it would've been a wasted effort. Each name was verified in the computer in a matter of moments, and then their baggage was checked in. After this, they were led off to the metal detectors where they and any carry-on bags would be scanned.

This was as far as L could go.

When they came to the line leading up to the devices, the detective came up short. It took the boys a moment to realize that he had paused.

"Um, something the matter, L?" Matt asked.

"You guys…you're about to go…" he said quietly.

"Last time I checked, that's what happens when you get on a plane," Mello snickered.

"Yeah…I know…but…"

"Hey, you said we can come back, right?" Beyond put in. "Don't worry, we're definitely holding you to that!" He smirked, the mischievousness glinting in his eyes.

"I suppose…"

"I kinda figured this was what you wanted," Near said, twirling his hair.

"I…you have to go," L said, swallowing hard. He knelt down and gathered the boys into a hug. "You three try to behave. Matt, keep Mello in check. Near, keep succeeding. And Mello…let's try not to kill Roger from stress, okay?" He gave them another tight squeeze before standing up in front of Beyond.

The boy had actually worn the straight jacket to the airport.

"You know they're going to make you take that off, right?" L asked him.

Beyond gave a half shrug. "Yeah, but it's part of my carry-on stuff, so I can put it back on once I'm through the checkpoint. Which I most definitely plan to." His grin widened.

"You have got to be the most disturbing soul I have ever met," L said, as he stepped forward to hug him as well. "But I'll admittedly miss you," he whispered. "Not your antics, but the smart, cunning person that made you a Wammy's kid to begin with."

"You are aware that you're unleashing me on your pupils again, right?" Beyond said to him.

"Yeah, but you'll be practice for them to sharpen their claws on. They have to start somewhere and there's no where better than your own back yard."

The teenager gave a full smile this time, stepping away from him. The others gave their final waves before making their way deeper into the crowd. Within moments, they could no longer be seen.

In a spurt of emotion that L couldn't place, he found himself taking a few steps in the direction that they had gone. Watari reached out and grabbed his arm. L raised deep, questioning eyes to his mentor, and the man simply shook his head. L understood. With a slow nod, he began shuffling his way out of the airport.

There was still a moment though, when he paused to look back and smiled at what was and what was to come.

~.~.~.~.~

It was sometime when they only had roughly ten minutes left till boarding that it happened. All of the departure boards began flashing and the times and flights became a jumbled mess. Security scattered everywhere, trying to calm the masses and the workers frantically consulted each other as they tried to fix the dilemma.

In all of this, four children remained perfectly calm. When the lights stopped flashing, the schedules appeared to be back in order, and the moment was dismissed as a quick fritz in the system. When their flight was called, the four boys stood up and headed to the other terminal across from their present one.

The woman standing at the hangar corridor gave a puzzled look at the schedule, swearing that the current flight wasn't until later. Oh well…"All aboard flight 263 to the United States!" The attendant called out. The oldest boy opened a folder that had been in his hands and showed her four tickets dated for that location. She nodded and waved them through.

Scheduled hacking of airport: check

Tickets purchased online: check

Defiance of authority and all rules: most definitely a check.

It seemed their summer adventures weren't quite over yet…

* * *

And so it goes that I am finally finished here. The chances of me doing another part to this are pretty small, so you guys will have to use your imaginations as to what happens to the boys from here. Thank you so, so, so much for all the love and support! All of you were absolutely awesome! I never knew I had it in me to write something that could be so well loved! ^_^ Strawberries and strawberry jam for all!

Death Note and I have seemed to have grown quite apart, but I might still write a piece or two for it. Or I could just go out with a bang. I'm still debating it, lol! With that said, I again appreciate you guys. I'm forever thankful to you.

--Amanda D. Williams

EDIT 3-11-10: I actually did get around to writing one very last thing for Laments. It's the very last story in my collection called 'Death Note: My Note, the A.D. Williams Files.' You can't miss it when you look at my stories; the description for it is in all caps, lol! I will also be continuing writing for Death Note!! Not a heck of a lot (KH is to blame there), but it's better than nothing, ^_^


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